Month: December 2008

Unb, Dhaka The first national election in independent Bangladesh was held on March 7, 1973 where a total of 1,209 candidates, including 120 independents, contested 300 seats. Of the total 35,205,642 registered voters, 19,329,683 (54.91%) voters exercised their franchise in the first election. Awami League secured 293 seats while the rest seven seats were shared ... Read more

Rakib Hasnet Suman The country is ready to return to normal through today’s election after a lot of dramatic turns of events during the last two years’ rule under a state of emergency that resulted from confrontational politics. The root of the crisis lies in the BNP-led four-party alliance government’s passing the 14th constitution amendment ... Read more

Our Correspondent . Tangail At least 24 persons were killed and 15 others injured when a truck fell into a road-side ditch at Garinda near Tangail town on Sunday morning. The police, quoting the witnesses, said the accident had taken place at about 9:00am when a Bogra-bound rod-laden truck from Dhaka, also carrying 45 people ... Read more

Staff Reporter At least 600,000 security personnel, including nearly 50,000 army troops have been deployed across the country to ensure a smooth election today for a new parliament and government. Home Ministry officials said yesterday the deployment of law enforcers at polling centers began from 6:00am and election materials started to be moved to remote ... Read more

Staff Reporter Cellular phones network will be in operation during the parliamentary elections to facilitate communication, Chief Election Commissioner Dr ATM Shamsul Huda said yesterday. In a televised address, CEC said the mobile phones would remain open this time during the parliamentary elections in order to keep communications uninterrupted. He said none would be allowed ... Read more

Staff Correspondent The president, Iajuddin Ahmed, will cast his vote in the Bangabhaban Government Primary School polling centre at about 11:00am and the chief adviser, Fakhruddin Ahmed, will cast his vote in the Gulshan Model High School polling centre at about 10:00am today. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party chairperson, Khaleda Zia, will cast her vote in ... Read more

Staff Correspondent The government has put in place five-tier security with the deployment of more than 6 lakh security personnel across the country for the general elections today. Home ministry officials said 80,567 personnel of the police, Rapid Action Battalion and the Armed Police Battalion and 466,000 Ansars personnel were deployed across the country. This ... Read more

Offers apology for past mistakes Shahidul Islam Chowdhury The Bangladesh Nationalist Party chairperson, Khaleda Zia, on Saturday said democracy and development were synonymous with BNP and its election symbol ‘paddy sheaf’ and urged the people

Nazrul Islam and Tushar Hayat . Chittagong The Awami League president, Sheikh Hasina, on Saturday sought a mandate from the electorate for her party’s ‘charter for change’ in Monday’s parliamentary elections urging the voters not to let their conscience be sold out to black money on offer. ‘They are out with sackfuls of money they ... Read more

Mostafa Kamal Majumder Begum Khaleda Zia, Chairperson of the BNP and leader of the 4-party alliance yesterday sought people’s mercy for mistakes committed during the alliance rule that ended in 2006 while at the same time asserting success in reducing corruption that, she said, had peaked during the Awami League rule between 1996 and 2001. ... Read more

Hasina, Khaleda respond to Al Jazeera Star Report Qatar-based television channel Al Jazeera published exclusive interviews of Awami League President Sheikh Hasina and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia on Friday. Al Jazeera asked the two leaders the same questions. Why should the people of Bangladesh elect you again? Sheikh Hasina: “Last time I was in power ... Read more

AL and BNP both allege ‘partisan role’ of EC, CG continues communication with Hasina, Khaleda Staff Correspondent Amid great enthusiasm contesters along with their activists and supporters from all political parties including Awami League-led grand alliance and BNP-led-four-party alliance passed busy schedule till Saturday late night for electoral trail as the stage is now set ... Read more

Abdullah Juberee Thousands of people in seemingly endless processions surged into the Paltan ground in Dhaka on Saturday to witness the conclusion of the BNP-led alliance’s campaign for the elections to the ninth parliament, where the alliance supremo, Khaleda Zia, called for concerted efforts to build a prosperous Bangladesh. Large and small processions from different ... Read more

Bdnews24.com . Dhaka Regretting ‘past mistakes’ the BNP chairperson, Khaleda Zia, in a televised speech Saturday evening, promised if elected that curbing prices would be her alliance’s number one task. ‘Stern actions against corruption and terrorism, and transforming parliament into an effective institution, will also get priority,’ she said. Khaleda’s recorded speech was aired on ... Read more

Bdnews24.com . Dhaka The Awami League president, Sheikh Hasina, in a televised speech on Saturday vowed to establish a Bangladesh free from hunger and poverty, and called for a ‘transparent political culture’ taking lessons from the past. Hasina called upon all, ‘Let us put an end to the politics of confrontation for the sake of ... Read more

In the metropolitan areas of Dhaka, Chittagong, Rajshahi, Khulna, Sylhet and Barisal, the Election Commission has imposed restriction on movement of taxicabs, microbuses, jeeps and pick-up vans from midnight today until December 29 midnight. Other vehicles including private cars will be allowed to ply. ACROSS THE COUNTRY There will be a ban on movement of ... Read more

World powers call for peace, Hamas responds by firing rockets Afp, Gaza City At least 195 Palestinians were killed across the Gaza Strip on Saturday in massive Israeli air strikes on the Hamas-run enclave, said the head of Gaza emergency services Moawiya Hassanein. Another 300 people were wounded, some 120 of them seriously in the ... Read more

Foreign ministry summons Indian high commissioner Staff Correspondent Indian survey vessels, which Thursday night entered the Bangladesh waters in the Bay of Bengal left the area Saturday evening, said a release issued by the Inter Service Public Relations. ‘The three ships have moved towards west leaving the Bangladesh waters and now they are doing survey ... Read more