Bangladesh’s National Citizen Party (NCP) has warned that it will boycott any future election unless the government first enacts the so-called July Charter, a reform agenda that party convenor Nahid Islam says is needed to dismantle what he calls the country’s lingering “fascist” system. Speaking at events in Nilphamari and Thakurgaon this week, Islam said the Charter must be formally declared between July and August and pledged that the NCP will publish a detailed manifesto on 3 August outlining its demands. According to Islam, the Charter seeks justice for killings during past July–August uprisings, broad constitutional changes and an end to what the party alleges are discriminatory state policies. He urged voters to back younger, alternative leadership and criticised development policies he said are overly concentrated in Dhaka. The push for reforms has drawn support from other opposition groups. Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami chief Shafiqur Rahman told reporters in Nilphamari that “a free and fair election is not possible” without fundamental changes to the current political framework and a climate that prevents violence. Jamaat used a rally in Rangpur to introduce candidates for 33 parliamentary seats while reiterating its own four-point reform platform, which includes justice for July-August killings. Student organisations and several smaller parties have issued similar warnings that voters will reject any ballot held before basic reforms are in place, underscoring growing pressure on the interim authorities, who say they aim to stage the country’s most credible election in decades.