BNP’s Moyeen Khan calls 2008 polls ‘pre-engineered’
Staff Reporter
Publish: 17 Aug 2025, 01:08 PM
BNP Standing Committee member Abdul Moyeen Khan on Saturday alleged that the 2008 general election was far from neutral, describing it as a “pre-planned and stage-managed” exercise where the winners were predetermined before voting took place.
Speaking at a discussion at the National Press Club auditorium in Dhaka, organised by former students of Dhaka College to mark the anniversary of the July–August mass uprising and the fall of fascism, Moyeen Khan said, “In December 2008, just days before the vote, a blueprint was already in place deciding who would be elected in each of the 300 parliamentary seats.”
The senior BNP leader argued that the
caretaker administration which took over during the One-Eleven political
crisis had implemented a “dishonest plan” to depoliticise Bangladesh.
“Although that plan eventually failed, the election that followed was publicised not only in Bangladesh but also by the United Nations and across the world as free and fair — yet in reality, it was anything but,” he said.
Moin
Khan claimed that the government established after that election went
on to rule for 16 years, during which, he alleged, Bangladesh suffered
political, economic, cultural and even religious degradation.
Reflecting
on last year’s political upheaval, Moyeen Khan said the July–August
2024 movement had ended the Awami League’s long grip on power.
“During
that struggle, children, youths, workers and students were beaten and
killed. Yet these sacrifices united the people and the student community
of Bangladesh,” he said.
Addressing students
directly, he urged them to focus on their studies while recognising
their future role in leading the nation. “Students bear a great
responsibility.
Those who are students today
will be the leaders of tomorrow’s Bangladesh. To guide the country in
the right direction, they must develop as proper citizens through
quality education,” he said.
On the interim
government, Moyeen Khan noted that it had been working independently for
a year to transition the country towards democracy.
“They
have indicated that the next election will be held before Ramadan in
February. We hope the Election Commission will announce the schedule in
due course,” he added.
BNP
Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi and Volunteer Affairs
Secretary Mir Sarafat Ali also spoke at the event, where former students
of Dhaka College presented gifts to the families of those killed during
the July–August uprising.
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