But while talking to the media BNP secretary General Khondker Delwar Hosain said that the selling of the forms did not mean that the party had finalised its decision regarding the participation in the election. "The government should lift the state of the emergency and to suspend the section 91 (e) of the RPO as demanded by the four-party alliance," he said.
It is learnt that the party started selling forms for 263 Constituencies keeping 37 seats reserved for the partners of the BNP led four party alliance. Nearly 1800 nomination forms were sold on Tuesday
Awami League will select an Additional Deputy Speaker from the opposition if the party goes to power, Sheikh Hasina was quoted by her aide to have said on Tuesday.
The step will be among others that the party will undertake to make parliament more effective, special aide Hasan Mahmud quoted the AL president as having said. "Since there's a provision for engaging more than one deputy speaker in the national parliament, the treasury will seek another name from the opposition for the purpose," Sheikh Hasina told the visiting UN delegation headed by Francese Vendrell at her Sudha Sadan residence. The Awami League president said her party would take part in the Jatiya Sangsad (JS) election slated for December 29 even if BNP did not participate in the polls.
The high-level United Nations delegation called on her on her on the day. The delegation came to Bangladesh to supervise the pre-election scenario in the country. Sheikh Hasina said her party is fully prepared for the long-overdue polls, being held against the backdrop of turmoil in the country's political arena following the crisis over the stalled general election of January 22 last year. Briefing reporters on Sheikh Hasina's talks with the UN delegation, the party chief's special aide and Awami League's environment affairs secretary Dr Hasan Mahmud said the UN team pointed out to the party president that till even yesterday (Monday), BNP did not make it fully clear if it was going to the polls.