Rumeen Farhana explains why she abstained from presidential election

Independent lawmaker Rumeen Farhana has explained her decision to abstain from Thursday's presidential election, describing the process as "meaningless" and a "farce."

The Brahmanbaria-2 MP explained her position while speaking to journalists at her residence in Shahbazpur village of Sarail upazila on Thursday night (August 20).

Rumeen said an election cannot be considered genuinely competitive when its outcome is known in advance. According to her, people across the country already knew who would win the presidential election, leaving little uncertainty over the result.

She also questioned the application of Article 70 of the Constitution, which restricts lawmakers from voting against their party. Rumeen claimed BNP lawmakers had been warned before the presidential election that they could lose their parliamentary seats if they voted against the party's decision.

She questioned why lawmakers were not given the freedom to vote according to their conscience in the presidential election if changes to Article 70 were to be considered after the election.

Rumeen said another reason for her abstention was the lack of broader political discussions on selecting a president. She argued that political parties could have reached consensus on a candidate through dialogue.

She also referred to BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia's 2016 proposal for greater balance between the powers of the president and prime minister, as well as the party's 31-point reform agenda, saying no meaningful discussion had taken place on the issue.

"Considering everything, I found the presidential election to be a farce and did not want to be part of the process," she said.

At the same time, Rumeen congratulated Mirza Fakhrul on being elected president and wished him success in his new role.