At a press conference at Hotel Purbani in Dhaka, the main opposition alliance announced the 35-point election manifesto saying that they would implement the pledges in five years if voted to power.

It pledged to amend Article 70 of the constitution to enable lawmakers to vote against their party except in the case of a vote of no confidence and money bills and Articles 115 and 116 of the constitution to place the lower judiciary absolutely under the Supreme Court and.

The pledges included establishment of permanent High Court benches in divisional headquarters and continuation of war crimes trial.

It said that none would be allowed to hold the office of prime minister for more than two consecutive terms, law would be enacted and a commission would be formed for appointment to the constitutional offices and a national security council would be formed under political leadership.

The opposition coalition pledged to stop extrajudicial killing and enforced disappearance, repeal the Digital Security Act, ensuring people’s right to vote ensuring complete freedom for the Election Commission, elect deputy speaker from opposition lawmakers and establish a ministry for minorities.

The front was launched on October 13 by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, the Gono Forum, the Jatiya Oikya Prakriya, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal–JSD and Nagorik Oikya. Later in November, Krishak Sramik Janata League joined the front.

The pledges in the election manifesto included no age limit for entry into public service except military and police forces, no quota in government services except for disadvantaged and physically challenged population, commission to study feasibility of allowance for educated unemployed, appointment to all vacant government posts in three years, Tk 12,000 as minimum wage for a garment worker in two years, minimum wage for all workers in a year and overseas employment for madrassah students providing them with technical education.

The pledges also included no PSC and JSC examinations, introduction of coordinated admission test in all public universities, reduction of cost of mobile phone and internet to half, regular elections to student unions in all educational institutions and commission for radical reform of education system giving priority to employment.

The front pledged no increase in tariff of power and gas in the first year for all and in the next five years for the users of maximum 100 units of power.
Attackers of students during protests for road safety would be brought under quick trial it pledged.

Making opening remarks, front chief Dr Kamal Hossain, also the Gono Forum president, warned that the country’s situation could take a ‘horrible turn’ if the 11th parliamentary elections did not take place in a fair manner.

He urged all to remain alert and active to ensure fair polls, saying time came for people to build up resistance and to unite to take the country’s ownership.
Kamal said that December 30 would be a mass uprising day through casting of vote.

Terming ‘mass-arrest’ of leaders and activists of opposition unlawful, he said that every day the opposition leaders and activist were being arrested. Citing a list of arrest of 681 leaders and activists few days ago, he said that the number stood at 1,900 in a couple of days. People of the country would be ashamed knowing it, he added.

He said he never witnessed in his 50 year political life the way arrests of and attacks on candidates were being made.
The manifesto said that controlling narcotics and adopting zero tolerance against terrorism and extremism would get priority in the government’s list from the first day of assuming in power.

It pledged to appoint Ombudsman, form an all-party national commission to examine justification for introducing provincial governments in Bangladesh, appointing opposition lawmakers as chief of a significant number of parliamentary standing committees and reduce reserved seats in parliament for women to 10 per cent from 15 per cent making mandatory nomination of women for at least 20 per cent seats by all political parties.
The front pledged to form All Party Truth and Reconciliation Commission with eminent educationists, social workers and lawyers for resolving cases filed to harass political opponents for establishing social peace aiming to forge national unity dropping vengeance against the backdrop of the filing of thousands of false cases.

The pledges included inclusion of all national heroes in the history of War of Independence to teach in school and colleges and research at universities.

The alliance pledged to ensure at least 30 per cent of the national budget to be spent by local government bodies in five years increasing 5 per cent each year and hold direct elections to district councils, ensure implementation of development works by the local government bodies, place government institutions under local government bodies and establish city governments placing service sectors under them.

It pledged to ensure independence of the Anti-Corruption Commission, repeal provisions of the government permission for arrest of corrupt government officials, take effective steps to stop money laundering and bring back siphoned money, not to stop ongoing development projects but reconsider the projects taken hurriedly by the Awami League government in the past two years and take stern action against plunderers of banking sector.

Buying necessary weapons and other materials for defence force on priority basis, adopting welfare based projects for members of armed forces and increasing risk allowance for police were also pledged.

The pledges included establishing 500-bed medical college and hospital in each district, establishing 20-bed CCU, 20-bed ICU and 10-bed NICU in all districts, fixing cost of medicine and diagnostics tests in three months, providing health cards to all citizens, introducing referral system in health care and making serving at union hospitals for one year mandatory for intern doctors.

Taking firm steps to protect citizens from harmful cultural aggression, ensuring voting rights of Bangladeshi expatriates and bringing bodies of expatriate workers from Middle-East through government’s management were also among the pledges.

The bilateral problems over sharing waters of common rivers, including Teesta, and Rohingya crisis would be resolved soon through discussion, pledged the front.

BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir termed the election manifesto revolutionary in the recent time. Demands of the people came up in the manifesto, he said.
Nagorik Oikya convener Mahmudur Rahman Manna read out the major points of the manifesto.

Front leaders including JSD president ASM Abdur Rob, KSJL president Abdul Kader Siddique, Gonoshasthaya Kendra founder Zafrullah Chowdhury, among others, were on the dais while leaders of different political parties and professionals, including former Dhaka University vice-chancellor Emajuddin Ahamed, professors Mahbub Ullah and Dilara Chowdhury and journalist Mahfuz Ullah, were present.