Jatiya Nagorik Party (NCP) convener and opposition chief whip Nahid Islam has called on former Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus and all former advisers of the interim government to take to the streets to protect the reform achievements made during their tenure.

Nahid Islam made the remarks at a press briefing at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on Saturday after returning from performing Umrah.

The Dhaka-11 constituency lawmaker said the current political turmoil surrounding reforms is not unexpected.

“This politics began right after August 5, starting from the consensus commission itself. A conflict emerged after August 5. We called for a new constitution, while BNP said they wanted elections. They wanted to come to power through elections while keeping everything from the old system intact. We said the country needed fundamental reforms,” he said.

Nahid said that after winning a two-thirds majority in the elections, BNP no longer cares about anything else.

“They have nullified the public mandate of the referendum. Now we are hearing that they are not bringing 10 to 11 important ordinances to parliament. They will not convert them into law. These include critically important ones such as the Enforced Disappearance Prevention and Remedy Ordinance, the Human Rights Commission Ordinance, and the Supreme Court Judges Appointment Ordinance. By scrapping these, they essentially want to enjoy unchecked executive power under an authoritarian system,” he said.

Describing BNP as fundamentally an anti-reform party, the NCP convener said the party endured 16 years of persecution and led various movements, but the people never rallied behind them because they never had faith in BNP’s leadership.

“We sought solutions within parliament. Since we are not getting adequate solutions there, we have no choice but to take our position on the streets. We want the Constitutional Reform Council to be formed and the ordinances to be enacted into law. The BNP government fails to understand that an economic downturn is approaching. If the people lose confidence in the government under these circumstances, BNP will not be able to run the country,” he warned.

Turning his attention to the former interim government leadership, Nahid said Dr Yunus, former adviser Asif Nazrul, and others who served during the interim period must take responsibility.

“They drafted these ordinances. Now that these are being scrapped, they must speak up. Dr Yunus must break his silence. They engineered the election, handed power to BNP, and walked away. They cannot simply watch these ordinances get cancelled, see reforms abandoned, say nothing, and return to their careers. They will have to answer to the people,” he said.

“We gave them power over the blood of our people. They have disappointed us. But whatever achievements were made during that period must be preserved, and they too must come out to the streets for that. I am calling on Dr Yunus himself to join the protests on the streets,” Nahid declared.