Opposition leader Sheikh Hasina yesterday said she would not allow creation of any vacuum in parliament, nor allow any vested group to derive benefit from any vacation of her party's parliamentary seats.

"I asked all my party lawmakers to join parliament and sign the attendance book anytime they like before expiry of the 90-day limit of absence," she said, replying a query of journalists on board Maowa ferry at noon on her way back to Dhaka fromTungipara.

Hasina avoided a direct reply to a question whether there were any lapses by the party's central leaders during the last month's agitation aimed at forcing the alliance government to quit by April 30 deadline set by Awami League (AL) General Secretary Abdul Jalil MP.

The opposition leader said the movement against the government did not fail although the April 30 deadline had passed. "In 1987, the momentum of movement was high, but the autocratic Ershad regime did not fall. Will you now say that movement has failed? In fact, the movement has moved another step forward and it will intensify."

She added: "Our leaders suffered large-scale torture while participating in the anti-government agitation as the alliance government became nervous and resorted to mass arrest... it is now clear the people do not want this government, and are shocked at seeing them still in power."

About the upcoming pourasabha

(municipal) polls, she said: "I've doubts if the polls will be free and fair, as the coalition government let loose police and party cadres against the AL leaders and workers in their bid to win the polls at any cost."

She added: "We will take the pourasava polls as an issue of our ongoing movement protesting the BNP-Jamaat bid to snatch the polls result."

Hasina mentioned the recent incidents violence in Naogaon, Jamalpur, Mathbaria, Companyganj, Banaripara, Kalihati and Narail ahead of the municipal polls.

To foil the AL's movement ahead of the municipal polls, she said she heard that BNP's first Joint Secretary General Tarique Rahman had a meeting with "notorious criminals Kala Jahangir and Subrata Bain" in the month of April.

Recently, a microbus full of arms was caught in Feni, but released following a phone call from a family member of the prime minister, the AL president alleged.

"They are trying to tighten their grip on power by hook or crook."

She said: "The alliance government no longer trust the incumbent president. Perhaps, the president will also have to face the same consequence like former president Badruddoza Chowdhury. And we are awaiting to see that farce."

In the morning, Hasina attended a meeting of the party workers at Gopalganj district AL office.