Following a meeting with Nicole Chulick, the visiting US deputy assistant secretary of state in the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, Jamaat Ameer Shafiqur Rahman said today that they had informed the latter that they wanted elections to be held before next Ramadan.
"If we wait till June, the monsoon season will begin with probabilities of cyclones and flooding, which could make the election uncertain. That is why we believe it must be held before Ramadan," he said, reports The Daily Star.
He said that the US delegation wanted to know about the current political situation in Bangladesh and asked when and how the upcoming election will be held.
"We said that the chief advisor of the government said that they will hold the election by December this year or June next year. We want to see if the chief adviser sticks to his commitment," added the Jamaat chief.
The meeting began at 2:15pm at the residence of the US Deputy Head of Mission in Dhaka`s Gulshan.
Jamaat-e-Islami`s Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar was also present at the time.
After the meeting, Shafiqur Rahman said they had an open discussion.
"We discussed how our economic policy and foreign relations would be if we were to take responsibility for the country in the future. They also wanted to know our views on various regional issues," he said.
Shafiqur said that they raised issues regarding minorities, women`s rights and labour rights.
"Also, we requested them to reconsider the 37 percent tariff imposed by the US, as our country is currently at a critical juncture, going through a crucial time. We requested that they relay our concerns," he added.
He said they had also stated their commitment to democratic norms.
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