Wednesday • September 20, 2006

N A T I O N A L  N E W S

Central Working Committee meeting held

New action program after hartal: Sheikh Hasina

Leader of the Opposition in Parliament and Bangladesh Awami League President Sheikh Hasina has said new action programs would be announced after nationwide blockade and hartal to make the coalition regime kiss the dust and meet their reform proposals for free and credible elections.

Talking to reporters after presiding over an emergency working committee meeting of her Awami League party at her Dhanmondi office last night, she said the alliance government should listen to the roars of people at the grand rally at Paltan Maidan.

"Despite obstruction, the grand rally proved that people would not accept the election of stealing their votes," she said, adding that the grand rally was a loud expression people's voice for the reforms.

Sheikh Hasina also asked the government to control the prices of essentials ahead of the commencement of Ramadan. "It is not conceivable that a government cannot control market prices…We'd controlled the market and kept price within the reach of the commoners," said the ex-PM.

The opposition leader blamed Hawa Bhaban for raising prices through business syndication.

The Awami League president asked her party members to build resistance if they were attacked by the alliance regime and its police.

Opposition's nationwide road-rail-river blockade today, hartal tomorrow

The 14-party opposition combine has called for enforcing a six-hour countrywide rail-road-waterway blockade today to press home its demand for holding of parliamentary polls under a reformed Caretaker Government and Election Commission.

The blockade will begin at 6am and will continue till 12 noon, a spokesman for the combine yesterday said.

Leader of the Opposition and Awami League President Sheikh Hasina on Monday announced at a mammoth gathering in Dhaka to enforce the road, rail and waterway blockade today and a dawn-to-dusk hartal tomorrow (Thursday).

The 14-party combine yesterday announced their full details of the blockade program specifying 21 spots in Dhaka city where opposition activists and supporters will put up blockade on movement of vehicles and other modes of transports.

Awami League General Secretary and Coordinator of the 14-party opposition combine Abdul Jalil, MP, yesterday told newsmen that opposition leaders and activists will also enforce the blockade on major approach roads to capital at Kanchpur, Maowa, Savar, Tongi and Gazipur.

"No transport or vehicle will ply tomorrow to and from the capital as well as in and between the districts," he said.

Combine leader Obaidul Qader at a preparatory meeting at the Central Awami League office at Bongobondhu Avenue yesterday said that they will stage blockade at least at 21 spots in the capital.

The spots include Gabtali inter-district bus terminal and No 10 Circle at Mirpur, 12 No bus stand at Pallabi, Russel Square at Dhanmondi, Hazaribag in Mohammadpur, Azampur at Uttara, Kuril Rail Crossing at Badda, Mahakhali, Moghbazar, Jurain Rail Gate in Shyampur and Jatrabari road crossing in Demra.

The spots of blocking traffic also include Dayaganj bus stand and Raysahebazar intersection at Suttrapur, Sadarghat, Babubazar Bridge in Kotwali, Shapla Chattar and Shajahanpur Rail Crossing in Motijheel area, Nur Hossain Square, Shahbag intersection, Kamlapur Railway Junction and Lalbag Kella intersection.

Presided over by Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya, convenor of Dhaka City Unit of the 14-Party combine, the meeting was also attended, among others, by Awami League leaders Mukul Bose, Abdul Mannan and Dr Mostafa Jalal Mohiuddin, Dr Dipu Moni, Advocate Qamrul Islam, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal leaders Moinuddin Khan Badal, Syed Zafar Sazzad, Nurul Islam of Ganotantri Party and MA Gani of NAP.

No polls will be allowed without reforms : Abdul Jalil MP

Awami League general secretary Abdul Jalil MP on Tuesday said the countrymen would not allow any caretaker government to hold the next general election without realizing their demands for electoral reforms.

Abdul Jalil MP was addressing the opening session of the 1st Central Council of a faction of Islami Oikkyo Jote (IOJ), led by its chairman Misbahur Rahman Chowdhury, at the auditorium of Engineers Institute in the capital.

He said the countrymen would cast their votes in the upcoming polls only after realizing their demands for reforming the caretaker government system and the Election Commission.

The Awami League leader said, "Our demands for electoral reforms must be accepted first." Those who are trying to mislead the people in the name of Islam to recapture power would be rejected by people in the ensuing general election.

Awami League presidium member Zillur Rahman MP speaking at the session said under no circumstances any partisan man like Justice KM Hasan as chief advisor of caretaker government and Justice MA Aziz as chief election commissioner would get chance to help the BNP-Jamaat alliance to grab power again through holding the general election.

Presided over by Misbahur Rahman Chowdhury, the IOJ council was also addressed by its secretary general Moulana Moniruzzaman Rabbani, AL joint secretary Obaidul Quader, and Zaker Party vice-chairman Khaja Mohiuddin Ahmad and general secretary Munshi Abdul Latif.

Later, a 151-member central committee of IOJ was announced at the council with Misbahur Rahman Chowdhury as chairman and Moulana Aminul Islam as secretary general.

Power-starved mob turns wrath on electric offices

Police open fire on Narsingdi demo, 2 get bullet wounds, 50 injured; 200 people lay siege to Meherpur sub-station

Enraged people in different parts of the country including Narsingdi, Meherpur and Munshiganj yesterday held demonstrations in protest against severe power outages. Power crisis, including frequent disruptions in its supply, has for quite some time been causing untold sufferings to the people across the country including the capital.

At least two persons sustained bullet injuries and fifty others were wounded in violence when police opened fire and charged baton on agitating crowds, who attacked the Palli Bidyut Samity-2 office at Chowla in Narsingdi town yesterday afternoon. The crowds were demanding uninterrupted power supply. They stormed the Palli Bidyut Samity office and damaged documents and furniture. They also set fire to 12 motorcycles of the Samity, two transformers worth Tk 2.5 crore and the special circuit breaker of the control room.

Police rushed to the spot, opened fire, lobbed tear gas canisters and charged baton on the violent people to disperse them. In the mayhem 50 people were injured. Two of them received bullet injuries. Seriously injured Kamal Hossain was admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital. Of the injured Raju Ahmed, Aminul Huq, Habibullah, Shafiqul, Abul Kalam Azad, Jamal Mia, Abdul Annas Chowdhury and Abdur Rouf are undergoing treatment at Narsingdi Sadar Hospital.

About 200 people of Gangi upazila in Meherpur district yesterday laid siege to the local PDB office. Police rushed to the spot and managed to pacify the demonstrators.

The Independent, September 20, 2006

Seven-day Deadline

IU VC asked to give jobs to 150 JCD men or quit

Jatyitabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD), student front of ruling BNP, yesterday gave the Islamic University vice-chancellor a seven-day deadline to recruit their 150 men or quit.

Before giving the deadline, JCD activists confined VC Prof Fayez Mohammad Serajul Haque to his residence for about an hour and held back all transports carrying students, teachers, officials and staff to the campus.

Campus sources said at least 50 JCD men led by its IU unit president Mominur Rahman and general secretary Humayun Kabir Firoz went to meet to the VC at around 1.55pm, just five minutes before end of office hours.

The VC sent a message to JCD men that he was tired and hungry and would meet them after launch.

This angered the JCD men. They shouted at the VC and threatened of dire consequence.

They then stopped all transports from leaving the campus when students, teachers, officers and staff were boarding vehicles to return to their residences in Kushtia town or Jhenidah.

Hearing the blusters, the VC called the JCD men to his residence and asked them to allow transports leave the campus. They released the transports and went to the VC's residence.

Sources said the JCD men asked the VC to make ad-hoc appointments of about 150 JCD activists and leaders to university jobs hurriedly as the government's tenure expires within weeks.

But the VC declined to do anything regarding appointment at the fag end of the government's tenure as this may raise questions later. The JCD men then raised slogans against the VC and hurled abuses at him. They gave the VC a seven-day deadline to accept their demand or to face 'dire consequence'.

The Islamic University appointed 336 people in posts of teachers, officials and other staff since the alliance government came to power. All the appointees were men of BNP and Jamaat, the sources said. A writ filed against the appointments is pending with the High Court.

The Daily Star, September 20, 2006

O T H E R S

Prices of essentials mark further rise ahead of Ramzan

Prices of essential commodities continued to rise afresh in different city markets and bazaars ahead of fasting month of Ramzan beginning next week. Price hike during Ramzan, particularly of items used frequently for Iftar and Sehri are almost annual traditional rituals.

But this year the rising trends of prices like potato, sugar, onion, gram, lentils, fish, meat and so on much ahead of Ramzan are causing concerns among the people, particularly fixed income families and housewives. Potato prices soared in recent weeks with one kilo being sold for up to Tk 24.00.

The Independent, September 20, 2006

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