Former interim government press secretary and Daily Wada editor Shafiqul Alam said leading editors met the opposition leader and Jamaat-e-Islami ameer at the opposition leader’s official residence on Minto Road in the capital on Monday. He described the gathering as an open, lively exchange without a fixed agenda or prearranged schedule. The Jamaat ameer made brief opening remarks before the editors offered views and advice.

According to Alam, participants openly discussed the opposition’s current activities and what it should do in the future. The meeting strongly criticized the previous Awami League government, which Alam said had become fascist and authoritarian and had closed political avenues for opposition parties. Participants also recalled what they described as negative roles played by opposition parties in the past.

Editors agreed that the national parliament should become the centre of all political activity in Bangladesh. They said parliament should be made effective and strengthened so it can genuinely represent the demands and aspirations of people from all sections of the country. The discussion also criticized frequent walkouts and hartals by the then opposition led by Sheikh Hasina between 1991 and 1996, saying they prevented parliament from functioning effectively.