BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Monday said ‘resorting’ democracy, installing a pro-people government and forcing government to hold an acceptable national election are major challenges for their party in 2018.

He, however, said their party sill wants to hold talks with the government over the 11th parliamentary elections.

‘We’ve long been talking about dialogue. No problem, we think, can be resolved without talks. But, the government has taken a position to hold the polls as per their so-called constitution without dialogue only to cement one-party rule. People won’t accept it,’ the BNP leader said, reports the UNB.

Fakhrul came up with the remarks while talking to reporters after placing wreaths at BNP founder Ziaur Rahman’s grave along with leaders and activists of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD), marking its 39th founding anniversary.

He said the country’s people think a credible and neutral election is not possible without a non-party election-time neutral government.

The BNP leader said their party thinks 2018 will be a year of people and victory of democracy, and people will make it happen.

Referring to the movement of teachers and employees of non-MPO educational institutions demanding enlistment under the government's Monthly Pay Order (MPO) facilities, he said their party has full support to the justified demand and protest programme of the teachers.

As his attention was drawn to media reports that an Islamic party has given permission for a rally at Suhrawardy Udyan on January 5, he said they also heard that a name only Islamic party has been allowed to hold an anti-militancy rally at the venue on that day. ‘It’s demonstrated again how the government is annihilating democracy.’

Fakhrul, on behalf of their party’s student wing Chhatra Dal, congratulated the country’s people on the New Year.

He hoped that the leaders and activists of JCD will play the pivotal role in restoring democracy and resolving students’ problems by strengthening their organisational capacity.