Month: November 2013

Some were wailing, some were giving vacant look and some were on their knees in front of the graves of their near and dear ones who died several months ago in the worst building collapse in Bangladesh history. A pall of gloom descended at Jorain Graybeard in the capital on Thursday morning when the relatives ... Read more

At least 60 people were injured as readymade garments (RMG) workers of hundreds of closed factories clashed with police at Savar and Gazipur while demonstrating in protest against the refusal of their owners to pay the proposed minimum wage of Tk 5,300 on Thursday. In Savar, hundreds of workers of Shams Style Limited of Standard ... Read more

Dhaka Sarak Paribahan Samity called a daylong bus strike in all long-distance routes for Friday protesting the murder of Sayedabad Transport Owners Association General Secretary Khairul Molla. Molla, 45, was killed at the capital’s Motijheel on Thursday evening. He was also the Organising Secretary of the Awami League’s Demra unit.

Two British adventurers are expected to reach Dhaka today crossing 15,000 kilometres on bicycles from London to raise awareness and funds for an institute for orphanage in Comilla. Luke Barton and Tom Smith were hoping to raise cash for Noor E Farid Nasrine Academy, home for 40 boys in Comilla, and War Child, a UK ... Read more

A French restaurant group has been accused of aesthetic snobbery after allegedly seating guests according to attractiveness. Good-looking diners at two of the most famous Paris establishments run by the well-known Costes group are said to be automatically upgraded to the best tables in the house. The claims have been made by two former employees

A Congress leader in Madhya Pradesh of India allegedly committed suicide yesterday after being denied a ticket to contest the state polls on November 25. Narsingh Malviya, a leader from Agar, allegedly took poison this morning. He died at a hospital in Ujjain where he was taken for treatment.

Political Killings Instability provides opening for settling of scores Political activists appear to be taking advantage of the country’s current political instability to settle scores, as the incidents of political killing increases throughout the country reaching its highest level since 2006. Since October 25, at least 16 political leaders and activists have been killed by rivals ... Read more

AL moves ahead with Hasina-led all-party govt plan Ministers have started preparations to submit their resignation letters to the Prime Minister, as the government has taken a firm stance to hold the next election under an all-party government proposed by the Prime Minister. Talking to The Independent, four ministers have confirmed that they would submit ... Read more

Army will be deployed, says?CEC The Election Commission (EC) plans to conduct the next general election between January 5 and January 15, and announce the schedule in the last week of November, senior officials said on Wednesday. They said the EC will meet President Abdul Hamid in the period between November 17 and November 24 ... Read more

United States congressman Steve Chabot has expressed hope that the Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, and the opposition leader, Khaleda Zia, will put the country ahead of their own interests and try to work with each other to reach a reasonable solution regarding the election process. Speaking at a roundtable on Wednesday at the American Centre, ... Read more

At least 150 people, including seven policemen, were injured in stray incidents of violence across the country on the last day of the 60-hour hartal, called by the BNP-led 18-party opposition combine, on Wednesday. In Dhaka, pro-hartal activists torched a number of vehicles and exploded several crude bombs, thereby creating panic among the people. A ... Read more

UN rights chief, Amnesty Int’l issue statements UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay yesterday expressed deep concern over sentencing of 152 people to death over the 2009 BDR mutiny and said it fell far short of international human rights standards. “The crimes committed during the mutiny were utterly reprehensible and heinous, and my sympathies ... Read more

Says Prof Yunus Grameen Bank founder Muhammad Yunus has strongly protested the changes to the GB law, blaming the government for “opening the door for its ultimate destruction.” Pointing out that the institution was founded as a bank owned and managed by poor women, he said its legal structure did not allow any sort of

All parties will contest polls:?PM Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday said that the general election would be held in accordance with the Constitution. “The government is pledged to continue Bangladesh’s democracy and development and the next parliamentary election will be held in accordance with the Constitution,” the Prime Minister told parliament in reply to a ... Read more

BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Wednesday said in no uncertain terms that the onus of holding talks lay on the government, and it must come forward and take all the initiatives to hold dialogue with the opposition party to resolve the prevailing political stalemate over the non-party caretaker government (CG) issue. ... Read more

The main opposition BNP will observe ‘National Revolution and Solidarity Day’ on Thursday, marking the civil-military ‘uprising’ in 1975. On this day, in 1975, amid political turmoil soldiers and civilians jointly freed then chief of army staff Ziaur Rahman from captivity in Dhaka cantonment,

The main opposition BNP-led 18-party alliance may go for another spell of nationwide 48-hour hartal or blockade programme from Monday to stoke up its movement for holding the next general election under a non-partisan caretaker government (CG). To make the programme final, BNP chairperson and leader of the opposition Khaleda Zia will sit with her ... Read more