Dhaka BNP on Tuesday submitted its Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s 13-point proposal on constituting a stronger Election Commission (EC) to Bangabhaban for President Abdul Hamid’s consideration.

A two-member BNP delegation, comprising party vice-chairman Ruhul Alam Chowdhury and its senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, took a copy of Khaleda’s proposals and a letter of the party seeking the President’s appointment to the presidential place at about 11:00am.

Brig Gen Mainul Rahman, assistant military secretary to the President, received the proposal paper and the letter on behalf of the President who left here for Singapore at about 10:30 am for his medical checkup there.

President’s deputy press secretary Mahmudul Hasan said, ‘The BNP delegation handed over a printed copy of their party’s proposals on Election Commission formation and a letter signed by the party secretary general to the President’s assistant military secretary.’

He said Mainur Rahman told the BNP team that President Abdul Hamid will hold dialogue gradually with political parties on the EC formation after his return from Singapore.

The President is likely to return home on 11 December.

Emerging from Bangabhaban, Rizvi said they have submitted their chairperson’s proposal and a letter to Mainur Rahman to hand those over to the President.

He said their party hopes that the President as the guardian of the state will take effective steps to form an acceptable EC as per hopes and aspirations of people.

Asked as to why they came to Bangabhaban despite knowing that the President is out of the country, Rizvi said they went there as per the schedule given earlier by Bangabhaban officials.

The tenure of current EC expires in February next. The new EC will conduct the next general election scheduled to be held in 2019.

On 18 November, Khaleda Zia placed a 13-point proposal for forming the new EC and called for reconstituting the EC in consultation with representatives of all registered political parties or with representatives of all political parties who over different periods had representation in the national parliament.

On 21 November, the BNP chairperson’s personal secretary Abdus Sattar had phoned the President’s military secretary seeking a schedule so that a party delegation can submit her proposals to the President.

Getting no response, a party on 23 November sent a formal letter to Bangabhaban seeking President Abdul Hamid’s appointment to submit the 13-point proposal.

As the party does not get any schedule to meet the President, it finally decided to reach the proposal to Bangabhaban.