& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Upazila Polls

PM mocks BNP's participation

Staff Correspondent
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said by contesting the upazila elections after boycotting the national polls, Khaleda Zia had to eat humble pie.
"Khaleda Zia had earlier said that no credible election was possible under the Awami League government and she boycotted the national election. Now her party is contesting the upazila polls, in which she has no belief and had abolished the system," the premier told a discussion at the capital's Krishibid Institution.
The Awami League organised the programme marking the International Mother Language Day.
Bangabandhu, said the prime minister, had taken Bangla to the international arena by delivering his speech in Bangla at the United Nations general assembly in 1974.
"We take pride in Bangla being our mother language. We are also proud of our sacrifice for the language which has earned it world-wide recognition," she noted.
Taking a swipe at Khaleda for terming the incumbent government "illegal", the AL chief said Khaleda Zia has already participated in the upazila elections and now she would accept everything.
The PM called upon the BNP chief to make a pledge to the people not to resort to falsehood again, not to mention waging a movement.
"BNP leaders have termed the government illegal. Who are they to call the government illegal? General Zia had captured state power at gunpoint and formed the BNP illegally. Was the reign of Zia legal?" she questioned.
The PM said the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu had created a post of deputy chief of army staff for Ziaur Rahman due to his family feud and brought him to Dhaka from Comilla. "Ziaur Rahman was the deputy chief of the army when Bangabandhu was killed. He was responsible for saving the president," she added.
On the movement of BNP-led opposition alliance, Hasina said the movement had no popular base of support and it was aimed at killing innocent people and destroying public property.
About the first phase of upazila parishad polls, she said the BNP favourites have won more chairmen posts than the candidates backed by the Awami League. "It doesn't matter who won or lost the electoral battle. What matters is people could cast their votes and elections were held in a free, fair and peaceful manner," she mentioned.
AL leaders Tofail Ahmed, Matia Chowdhury, Yusuf Hossain Humayun, Jahangir Kabir Nanak, Bahauddin Nasim, Habibur Rahman Seraj, MA Aziz and Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya and Dhaka University Vice-chancellor AAMS Arefin Siddique were present at the discussion, chaired by AL presidium member Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury.