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JS body suggests A parliamentary standing committee yesterday recommended offloading 40-49 percent shares of Biman Bangladesh Airlines Ltd onto non-resident Bangladeshis (NRBs) to improve the financial strength of the national flag carrier and make it profitable. The parliamentary body on the civil aviation and tourism ministry also asked the Biman management to lease three Boeing-777s ... Read more

Party to make changes in several district committees The Bangladesh Nationalist Party is considering some changes in the convening committees of several district units after a section of local leaders and activists staged demonstrations, demanding cancellation of the some newly formed committees. Local leaders and activists brought out processions, burnt effigies, held rallies and launched ... Read more

The Election Commission will write to the speaker to ask for cancellation of the parliamentary membership of Bangladesh Nationalist Party lawmaker Salauddin Quader Choudhury for furnishing ‘false’ information in his affidavit to the commission as a candidate in the 2008 general elections. Election commissioner M Sakhawat Hussain told reporters on Monday that the EC would ... Read more

Ajantha Mendis spun out New Zealand as Sri Lanka roared into the World Twenty20 semi-finals with an emphatic 48-run win at Trent Bridge here on Tuesday. The mystery spinner grabbed 3-9 in three overs as the Black Caps failed miserably to chase down a target of 159 in a

Higher costs of consumption, especially spiralling of food inflation in recent years, have offset the real wages of the industrial and informal sector workers in urban areas, indicate the latest official statistics. Even though the national consumption index rose almost 40 per cent over the past five years, labour leaders said there was no substantial ... Read more

He calls accusers liars A whimsical decision by former communications minister Col (retd) Oli Ahmed in choosing the entry\exit points for the proposed Asian Highway (AH) that would go through Bangladesh, has been delaying the country’s inclusion in the network, said experts. The former minister chose a mountainous route, instead of a short and more ... Read more

The government is spending huge amount from the public exchequer for its ongoing drive against river grabbers, although there is a legal option for realising the cost from the demolished property of the encroachers. Director (Port Division) of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) Mahabubul Alam said they have never received any

The parliament secretariat is looking into ways to have the former chief of the Anti-Corruption Commission and two commissioners of the anti-graft body present before a parliamentary panel. Charged with contempt of parliament for non-compliance with a legislative summon, issued in April, the committee on public undertakings requested the speaker of Jatiya Sangsad to ensure ... Read more

Almost all key players, excepting one, behind the takeover of power on January 11, 2007 by a military-backed administration have left or been compelled to leave office with the retirement of Moeen U Ahmed as the army chief. Thus what was dubbed the ‘era of three Ahmeds’, inclusive of president Iajuddin Ahmed and chief adviser ... Read more

Push for arrest of Gen Moeen BNP standing committee member and former law minister Barrister Moudud Ahmed, MP, has demanded trial of the people behind the 1/11.  “The masterminds behind the 1/11 should bring under trial. People of Bangladesh will not forgive them and they must be punished,” he said at a discussion at the ... Read more

The Election Commission has decided to issue show-cause notices to the registered political parties if they fail to submit their permanent constitutions by the July 25 deadline. “We want the political parties to submit their permanent constitutions to the Commission in compliance with the July 25 deadline,” Chief Election Commissioner Dr ATM Shamsul Huda told ... Read more

Parties to explain if they fail to submit their constitutions by July 25 The Dhaka City Corporation election will be held by the end of December this year, said the chief election commissioner, ATM Shamsul Huda, on Monday. He said this in a press briefing at the Election Commission secretariat where election commissioners Sohul Hossain ... Read more

But US, EU hail Netanyahu’s conditional acceptance of Palestinian state Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s conditional acceptance of a Palestinian state came under fire yesterday, with the Arab world and Palestinians saying it killed chances of a peace deal. The United States, Israel’s main ally, saw the address as an important step forward and the ... Read more

Health Minister Dr AFM Ruhul Huq called upon the people not to be panicky about the swine flu since no case of it has been detected as yet in the country till yesterday. “Experts have already examined 41,348 incoming people at the Zia International Airport after swine flu broke out in different countries, but no ... Read more

Child labour laws to be updated Says law minister The government will update the existing labour laws to stop children doing hazardous jobs, said Law Minister Shafique Ahmed yesterday. Since many families depend on the incomes of their children, child labour should not be stopped straightaway enacting any law, he said, adding that the government ... Read more

Home Minister Sahara Khatun yesterday warned officials of law enforcement agencies that they would be held accountable for failing to improve law and order in the country soon. “I have ordered the law enforcement agencies to work for improving law and order immediately although they have acute shortage of manpower,” Sahara told the press after ... Read more

The government’s proposal to allow legalise black money is against its election pledge, said the Transparency International Bangladesh in a post-budget reaction on Friday. In a press release, TIB’s executive director Iftekharuzzaman said it was incompatible with good governance and prevention of corruption, the campaign promises of the ruling party. In an unprecedented measure, finance ... Read more

The government will appoint at least three judges to the Appellate Division and 10 judges to the High Court (HC) Division of the Supreme Court (SC) by June this year as a number of judges of both the divisions will retire this year and next year. The present government appointed 11 judges to the HC ... Read more

Critical of money whitening provision Some left-leaning political parties and organisations on Friday termed the proposed budget for the 2009–2010 financial year ambitious and doubted if whether it could be implemented. They criticized the finance minister, AMA Muhith, for allowing black money to be whitened, saying criminals, looters and plunderers of national resources have been ... Read more

Kalpana Chakma abduction anniv observed A section of ethnic minority women staged demonstrations in Rangamati Friday asking the government to publish a white paper on repression carried out in its different forms allegedly by the security forces on the ethnic minority groups. They made the demand along with a few others at a rally organised ... Read more