US issues visa policy 7 months before polls sensing AL's vote-rigging plan: Amir Khasru

While the USA imposes visa restrictions on other countries e.g. Uganda, Nigeria, and Somalia over post-election irregularities, it has announced a visa policy for Bangladesh seven months before the upcoming national election sensing another vote-rigging plan by the incumbent Awami League regime, BNP Standing Committee Member Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury has said.

This is a shame for the country, which the present government has brought in, he added while addressing a discussion at the Dhaka Reporters Unity Auditorium on Wednesday, organised by the newly founded political party Gono Odhikar Parishad.

Speaking at the event, leaders of various political parties, former diplomats, university teachers, and civil society members echoed similar sentiments, alleging that the government aims to conduct another election of "vote stealing", similar to those in 2014 and 2018. They believed that the US had introduced the visa policy in response to this situation.

The discussants in the meeting also observed that the government is making efforts to portray a positive image after the announcement of the US visa policy. They vowed not to fall into the government's trap and declared their refusal to participate in any elections under the present administration.

Nurul Haq Nur, member secretary of Gono Odhikar Parishad, claimed that the government is employing various tactics to provoke the opposition.

He emphasised that the opposition does not seek conflict but rather urges the government to take the path of fair and impartial elections under a non-partisan administration.

Shama Obaid, an organising secretary of the BNP, expressed her dismay at the present government, stating, "This visa policy has brought shame upon our country. It poses a threat to every citizen."

Former secretary Mofazzal Karim addressed the meeting, shedding light on the sufferings of ordinary people caused by political parties. He asserted that the new US visa policy sheds light on the nature of elections being held in the country.

Former ambassador Sirajul Islam, "For more than a year and a half, Bangladeshi lobbyists or consultants had been trying to pursue the White House, State Department, or Congress for a meeting with the prime minister during her recent visit to the USA, but in vain.

"In the last 52 years since we became independent, even a leader such as Ershad never returned from America without meeting anyone. This is the first time such an incident has happened with the prime minister of Bangladesh."

Professor Ruhul Amin from Dhaka University's International Relations Department expressed his concerns about the US visa policy, stating that it is not good for democracy.

Various members of Gono Odhikar Parishad, including joint conveners Muhammad Rashed Khan, Saddam Hossain, Tarek Rahman, and Chhatra Odhikar Parishad President Bin Yamin Mollah, also shared their views during the meeting moderated by the party's Joint Convener Zakaria Palash.