Declare hartal illegal

By SM Khalid Chowdhury, Dhaka
22 January 2004, 18:00 PM
It is defiantly an act of illegality to keep mass people illegally confined- a legacy of the colonial era. The freedom fighters adoptedhartalas an instrument to immobilise the colonial government.

After the achievement of political liberty and emergence as a sovereign and independent state an instrument of colonial past cannot be dragged on afterwards. The respected leader of the opposition and daughter of the father of the nation promised to the people not to indulge in hartal any more but then she retreated from her pledge. The hartal and the boycott of session of the parliament is an act which is definitely illegal and betrayal to the nation. The political parties must refrain from hartal as it is making colossal loss and damage to country's economy.