Acting Secretary General of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan yesterday urged the members of his party and front organisations to keep patience in the face of Opposition's instigations and be firm to safeguard democracy, independence, sovereignty and economic uplift of the country at any cost reports

BSS.

Mannan Bhuiyan, also the minister for food and agriculture. was speaking at a discussion organised by the BNP at its central office in memory of Shaheed Noor Hossain who had sacrificed his life on this day in 1987 for the restoration of democracy in the country.

Speakers at the meeting paid rich tributes to this hero of democratic movement whose sacrifice had helped establishment of voting rights of the people.

Works Minister Rafiqul Islam Mia, Joint Secretary General and Fisheries and Livestock Minister Abdullah-al-Noman. Joint Secretary General Mirza Abbas MP. central Organising Secretary Haris Chowdhury, spoke on the occasion.

The BNP acting secretary general reiterated the call of his party to the opposition political parties to withdraw their hartal programmes and come to a dialogue across the table to resolve the problems relating to holding of fair and impartial polls.

He said, everything involving holding of free and fair polls could be in the agenda of the discussion but there could not be any dialogue on precondition.

Rafiqul Islam Mia said the Awami League, in collaboration with the killers of democracy, was now engaged in snatching the voting rights of the people. People must realise the conspiracy of the Opposition, he said.

He pointed out that Sheikh Hasina by suggesting the Chief Justice as the head of a caretaker government was nothing but inviting him to violate the Constitution.