Old or young?: BCL goes to council today for picking leadership

After a break of five years, the national council of Bangladesh Chhatra League will be held in the capital today to elect new leaders of the pro-Awami League student organisation.

Prime Minister and AL President Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the two-day 27th national council as the chief guest at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre at 10:00am.

President and general secretary hopefuls are lobbying with the top AL leaders while the issue of age limit for the BCL leadership in new committee is yet to be finalised.

Before the last council in April 2006, Hasina fixed a maximum age limit of 29 to ensure only students stay in student politics.

But the council, supposed to be convened in every two years, was kept deferring to cause a leadership jam. In the meantime, many leaders grew older.

Sources in BCL and AL said the age limit would be finalised today or tomorrow after a discussion with the prime minister.

"The maximum age limit is still 29. The new leadership of the student organisation will be elected through casting votes in transparent ballot boxes," AL Presidium Member Obaidul Quader told The Daily Star.

The age limit could be changed at the will of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, noted Abul Kalam Azad, an election commissioner for the council.

Some aspirants for the key posts, however, demanded extension of the age limit by at least two years.

Meanwhile, a section of former and current BCL as well as AL leaders have taken stance against election fearing illegal exchange of money by incumbents to woo voters.

They alleged a group of former BCL leaders have already started distributing money to the councillors to win their votes.

"The incumbent president and the general secretary have selected almost all the councillors [voters] from among the persons of their choice. Their favourites will easily emerge winners," said a candidate preferring not to be named.

"We want the prime minister to select the president and the general secretary this time to save the organisation from the grip of the syndicate which are buying votes for handsome amounts of money," mentioned another candidate.

The BCL men who have the possibility of getting top posts include Nasim Al Momen Rupok, Sazzad Saqib Badsha, Badiuzzaman Sohag, Siddique Nazmul Alam, Jafrul Shahriar Jewel, MIK Rashidul Islam, Joy Deb Nandi, and Amit Kumar Chakravorty.

Source : The Daily Star