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The issues surrounding the creation of a national security council should be addressed at a later time by the next elected parliament, rather than by a caretaker government, so as not to disrupt the election roadmap, said a senior Awami League figure on Tuesday, reports bdnews24.com. "A national security council can be discussed in the next Sangsad, not now. We do not want that the election is disrupted by discussions on what may happen in five months or one year's time," said AL acting general secretary Syed Ashraful Islam.
Ashraful was speaking to reporters after party leaders, headed by AL acting president Zillur Rahman, met with a visiting pre-election delegation of the European Commission Tuesday.
After the one and a half hour meeting, European Union ambassador in Bangladesh Stefan Frowein said: "An eight member delegation from Brussels has come to observe the present political situation in Bangladesh."
The delegation sat with Awami League Tuesday noon as part of a series of meetings with political parties, civil society, mass media and others concerned with the present political situation in Bangladesh.
Zsolt Bartfai, head of the delegation and in-charge of the European Commission's Human Rights and Democratisation Unit's election desk, told reporters the delegation would send a report to the Brussels-based EU commissioners on the basis of discussion with all regarding the present political situation.
"Observers will be sent to monitor the next election based on this report," he said.
Bartfai said the delegation was set to hold talks with all concerned stakeholders including the mass media, political parties and civil society.
Ashraful told reporters following the meeting that the two sides had discussed the schedules for the next national election, electoral laws, local polls and the matter of a national security council had also arisen.
"We said we want immediate withdrawal of the state of emergency, and national election before all other polls. We think the main responsibility of this government is to hand over power to the people's representatives. This government should not do anything which may hinder the election," Ashraful said.
The AL acting general secretary also stressed: "Awami League does not want local polls before the national election. This is said with a motive."
Replying to a reporter's question, he said: "Around 28,000 people have been arrested in just two weeks. If this continues, it will not be possible for anybody to take part in the election. We want panic should not be created in this way."
Awami League presidium members and other senior party leaders were present in the meeting.
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