Was the ban on political gatherings urgent

Election Commission logo.

The ban on political gatherings imposed by the ministry of Home Affairs under the direction of the Election Commission from December will further narrow the political space of the opposition BNP and its allies which have been under severe police action since their October 28 greand rallies abruptly ended amid violence.

The logic behind this action is to ensuring that electoral activities are not obstructed. A key question here is whether this drastic action of a blanket ban on political gatherings was warranted. Restrictions on such gatherings at some key places might have served the purpose.

December 17 is the last date of withdrawal of nominations following which electioneering by candidates fielded by the ruling party Bangladesh Awami League and its allies.

A Home Ministry notification said, “As the candidates will start their election campaigning from December 18, the ministry ordered all to refrain from holding meetings, rallies or any types of political programme that may hinder the election environment or discourage the voters from voting.”

The BNP and its allies will remain out of the third successive general election if no understanding can be reached for holding an inclusive election. The government has been trying to brand the BNP as a terrorist party to justify its exclusion from the election. This branding has been on since the 2015 concooperation movement.

There has been to respite of BNP leaders and workers from court cases and arrests plus political repression since the time of the last caretaker gocernment which was in power for two years with the backing of the military, party leaders say.

On the other hand the AL government has run the administration for three successive terms with practically no opposition and no balance in the power hierarchy. If politics remains oppositionless for another five years then the situation of democracy will become really grim.