National Citizen Party spokesperson Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain yesterday accused the BNP of “playing a dual game” by challenging the July Charter in court.

“No way should this parliament begin with the ‘last remnant of fascism’. If it happens, all parliament members will have to answer,” he said at a press briefing at the party’s Banglamotor office in the capital.

Asif said the elections were held on the basis of the July Charter and warned that if the court strikes down the Charter, both Parliament and the government could face dissolution.

He also referred to a recent statement by Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed, who said he had heard that the July Charter was being challenged in court by certain quarters.

“I wonder whether he has merely ‘heard’ about the court proceedings or whether they themselves orchestrated it,” Asif said.

He urged the government not to use the court as a “political shield” and called on ruling party lawmakers to take oath to the Constitutional Reform Council before the upcoming parliamentary session.

He criticised the government for opting for constitutional amendments instead of agreeing to a full rewrite of the Constitution, alleging that it has historically been altered to serve party interests.

He claimed the current administration was following the same path through “selective and preferred reforms”.

Asif further demanded the impeachment of the president and said Parliament should not begin its first session with a presidential address.

Meanwhile, NCP Convener Nahid Islam yesterday alleged that an attempt to use the judiciary for political purposes and make it partisan yet again was underway.

Nahid, lawmaker for Dhaka-11 and opposition chief whip in the Jatiya Sangsad, also said the current government was formed based on the public mandate given through the July Charter and the referendum.

“There is an attempt to use the court politically to cancel that mandate by making the judiciary partisan again,” he said, warning that turning the court into a tool of a party agenda would have serious consequences.

“Our struggle is not over. We have to restart the movement for judicial reform and against corruption and hegemony,” he said while addressing as chief guest at an iftar event organised by NCP at a convention centre in Chattogram’s Panchlaish area.