Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday warned opposition leader Khaleda Zia of dire consequences if she does not refrain from destructive activities like arson attacks and murders.“I’ll request the opposition leader to stop vicious acts like arson attacks on buses, killings and damaging railway property and locomotives…if you don’t stop these we know how to handle these things with an iron hand,” she said.
Hasina, also the President of the ruling Awami League, came up with the strong warning in her opening remarks at a views-exchange meeting with the grassroots leaders from Chapainawabganj district at her official residence Ganobhaban.
The Awami League chief said the opposition leader cannot accept the fact that the country’s people are now passing their days in peace with three meals a day. “But, she (Khaleda) wants to eat all alone, she has no intention to provide food for the common people.”
Hasina went on, “The people of the country want peace, they don’t want instability…we want to ensure so that instability doesn’t grip the country again.”
Referring to press reports that the BNP has decided to join the budget session of parliament, she welcomed the move and said it should not just be a move to save their membership.
“I’ll request them, please come to Parliament, discuss in Parliament, please don’t go away just attending the session for a while to save your membership,” the premier said.
Hasina said the opposition leader has her own style of joining Parliament — come, deliver a long speech and go away.
“Please don’t repeat it, this is the budget session, stay in the House, speak there and we want you to stay in Parliament… at least come to the path of democratic process,” she said.
Regarding the next election, the Prime Minister reiterated it will be held as per the constitution and following the parliamentary democratic system across the world. “If she has something to say, she can say that in Parliament, we’ll of course look after what we can do.”
But, Hasina said, her government will not allow anyone to play with the fate of people. “We won’t allow anyone to play with the voting rights of people,” she asserted
The Prime Minister mentioned that the government will not accept any quarter to play with the hard-earned democratic process.
About the 48-hour ultimatum of the opposition leader, Hasina said, “The opposition leader had said we would not get the path to flee… now who has lost the path, we or she?”
Sheikh Hasina further mentioned that when she had made the dialogue offer to solve the problem, Khaleda threw the ultimatum and issued a threat to dislodge the government.
The PM also questioned the intention of the opposition leader for issuing the 48-hour ultimatum.
Recalling the adverse situation just before the 2001 election, she said the army was deployed across the country, they oppressed the Awami League leaders and activists, many of the AL leaders and activists were not allowed to enter in the voting centres. “Many candidates couldn’t place their agents in the voting centres.”
Reaffirming that the present government wants to ensure a balanced development in the country, the Prime Minister said the government, since assuming office, put in its all efforts to that end.
She asked the Awami League grassroots leaders to strengthen the party so that it could return to power to carryon the development activities of the country.
The office-bearers of Chapainawabganj district unit AL, national committee members, AL MPs, administrator of Chapainawabganj District Council, presidents and general secretaries of upazila, thana, union and municipal units and upazila chairmen and vice-chairmen of the party, mayors and councillors of municipalities, chairmen of the union councils and presidents and general secretaries of the associate and like-minded bodies of the Awami League district unit were also present at the meeting.
AL leaders Dr Alauddin Ahmed, Satish Roy, Abdul Latif Siddique, Nuh-Ul-Alam Lenin and Jahangir Kabir Nanak were present. UNB
