No talks with Khaleda

Ruling out once again the possibility of dialogue with Khaleda Zia, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said the best option for the BNP chief was to surrender to court.

“What dialogue with her? What dialogue with the person who is a killer and whose hands are stained with blood and smell of burnt people?” she asked.

The prime minister was speaking at a rally of Bangladesh Peshajibi Samannay Parishad at Krishibid Institution at the city's Farmgate.

Hasina, also president of the ruling Awami League, alleged that Khaleda Zia had even killed infants, expectant mothers as she does not consider people as human beings. “On top of it, she's the leader of the militants. Who will hold dialogue with a militant leader?”

Before the January 5 election last year, Hasina added, she had invited the BNP chairperson for a dialogue, but to no avail. “I had tried a lot, I had said ... let's participate in the election, even I offered to involve the BNP in the election-time government with some ministries, but she didn't respond.”

Hasina advised Khaleda to surrender before court as an arrest warrant had been issued against her.

She also said if the BNP chief did not surrender before court, the government would be bound to act as per the court order. “And that order will be implemented in time.”

Hasina said her government would do everything necessary to end the “miserable days created by Khaleda Zia”. “This is our commitment,” she said, adding that she needed cooperation from all in this regard.

The PM said the BNP leader had no right to indulge in things that only harm the nation. “People won't accept this, they won't tolerate it,” she said.

Hasina said Khaleda had failed to create any movement involving the people of the country.

“We too had waged movement, but that was with support from the people. That was a mass movement, the people of the country came out on the roads,” she said, recalling that their movement had forced Khaleda's government to step down on March 30, 1996, after holding a voter-less election on February 16 the same year.

Reiterating that boycotting the 10th general election was a political mistake of Khaleda Zia, she said the BNP leader is now taking revenge on people.

“Why do people have to pay for your wrong decision? It's not easy to play with the fate of our people. At least, I won't allow this as long as I'm alive,” she went on.

“She [Khaleda] didn't get any response from those on whom she relies ... north or west, no country responded to her call because of her militant character, no one supports burning people to death.”

Samannay Parishad President Justice AFM Mesbah Uddin Ahmed presided over the rally and Secretary General Prof Kamrul Hasan Khan delivered the welcome address.

PM's Media Adviser Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury, Attorney General Mahbubey Alam, Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor Prof AAMS Arefin Siddique, among others, spoke on the occasion.