FROM PAGE 3

The 12-party delegation was led by Mostafa Jamal Haider, chairman of the Jatiyo Party (Kazi Zafar faction) and chief coordinator of the alliance. The alliance’s spokesperson Shahadat Hossain Selim and 11 other leaders also attended.

The alliance opposed the commission’s proposal to lower the minimum voting age to 17 and the candidacy age for MPs to 21.

“We insisted the voting age remain at 18 and the minimum age for MP candidates at 25. We are ready to launch a movement over this if necessary,” said Selim.

He added, “We told the commission not to undermine politics by inviting mushrooming political groups. Some parties slept through the past 15 years and are now being called into meetings -- this is an insult to those of us who actively protested. The commission appears overly ambitious, as if trying to change the country overnight. We asked them to be more realistic -- these changes will take time.”

The BASAD delegation was led by Executive President Abdul Ali and included General Secretary Babul Mollah and five others.

Babul Mollah said the party agreed to limit both the prime minister and president to four-year terms, with the prime minister restricted to two terms.

BASAD also proposed that all 300 parliamentary seats be elected through proportional representation and that the Election Commission should bear the cost of elections.

Asked if they proposed an election date, Mollah said they did not do so but emphasised the importance of timely elections.

He also said, “There is no comparison between July uprising and 1971. Without the Liberation War, there would be no July.”

The session with the 12-party alliance was presided over by Prof Ali Riaz, vice president of the National Consensus Commission, and moderated by Monir Hayder, special assistant to the Chief Adviser.

In his opening remarks, Prof Riaz said, “Building national consensus is not the commission’s responsibility alone. Those of you who have joined the struggle and are engaging in dialogue -- reach out to allies and other political forces. Let’s find a way to unite.”