Hasina govt corrupt & undemocratic: B’desh Oppn ahead of polls

Dhaka: On the eve of Bangladesh’s general election, the country’s main opposition party’s vice chairman Nitai Roy Chowdhury on Saturday alleged that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina-led government is neck deep in corruption.

“This government out and out from head to neck is corrupt. They have connections. This is not a democratic government. Development cannot be there without democracy. People’s participation must be there,” Roy from the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) told reporters.

“In our politics why do I stress so much on economic conditions? Politics is a concentrated expression of the economy. If we fail to bring our economy in position, it will not do anything. We are going through a peaceful movement. We never believe in violence and destroying people’s property,” he said.

Bangladesh’s main opposition party BNP led by former prime minister Khalida Zia is boycotting the January 7 election amid violence and has called for a 48-hour nationwide strike against the “illegal government”.

The BNP is demanding an interim non-party neutral government to hold the election.

The demand was, however, rejected by the government headed by Hasina, who is also the chairman of the ruling Awami League.

Speaking on the arson attack on a train coming from Benapole, Roy Chowdhury said: “We are going through peaceful movement. We never believe in violence and destroying people’s property.”

At least four people, including two children, were killed and many were injured in Dhaka on Friday in the incident meant to “sabotage” the elections by instilling a sense of fear in the voters.