Dhaka: Awami League General Secretary and Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader on Thursday said there is no scope for BNP to have any a technocrat minister during the polls-time government as the party has no representation in Parliament.

‘This time they won’t be given any proposal either,’ he told journalists at his Secretariat office.

The minister further said, ‘In 2014, the government offered them the home ministry which was an open secret and everybody knew about it, but they turned it down. Now there’s no scope for BNP.’

Obaidul said it is entirely the decision of BNP whether it will join the next general election or not. ‘The election train wouldn’t stop for them,’ he said adding: ‘This time people will resist them and they’ll never be able to stop the election.’

‘During the 2014 election, BNP had tried to obstruct the general election by carrying out terrorist activities. So, a Canada court branded them as terrorist outfit. If they think to carry out the same activities again then it’ll be impossible. They won’t be able to resist the election,’ he said.

Referring to a remark of BNP leader Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir about Tarique Rahman over holding BNP’s chairmanship, he said Tarique has been convicted on graft charges and Khaleda Zia is now in jail for graft. ‘So, it proves that the party is a corrupt one,’ he said.

Talking about BNP’s movement, he said, ‘There’s no respite in BNP’s movement, but people do not respond to them.’

Replying to a query, Obaidul said, ‘As Tarique Rahman is a convicted accused, the government will try to bring him back.’

Asked whether the government is trying to bring BNP to election, the minister said: ‘It’s BNP’s decision not to participate in the election without their chairperson. We’ve nothing to do about it.’

He, however, said it is their right to participate in the election.