BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia yesterday said she would not say anything about Sunday's national election.

She said this when reporters asked her about the election after a hearing of the Niko graft case at a makeshift court inside the Old Dhaka Central Jail.

As she was being taken back to her cell in a wheelchair, she said, “My legs ache too much.”

During the hearing, she told the court, “I won't come to the court if it sits at a place like this. The court can't run here. Our people can't come here. Give me sentence if you want….I won't come to this court.”

Judge Sheikh Hafizur Rahman of the Special Judge Court-9 of Dhaka said, “Start the charge hearing afresh as I am new in this case. I will hear everyone's speech.”

After that, Public Prosecutor of the Anti-Corruption Commission Mosharraf Hossain Kajol read out the charges against Khaleda and 10 others.

BNP standing committee member Barrister Moudud Ahmed, an accused in the case, told the court, “We are yet to get the documents stating the allegations against us although we have applied for them before. We need to read those documents to be able to fight the legal battle.”

He also said the setting of the court was not appropriate for holding a trial as there was no proper seating arrangement for lawyer and others.

Prosecutor Mosharraf Hossain Kajol argued that the defense was trying to delay the charge framing by saying those things.

The court fixed January 13 for the next hearing.

The judge also kept a petition in the case file submitted by Attorney General Mahbubey Alam on November 22 last year seeking permission to produce an FBI agent and two Canadian police as witnesses before the court to testify.

On December 9, 2007, the ACC filed the case with Tejgaon Police Station accusing Khaleda and 10 others of abusing power to award a gas exploration and extraction deal to Canadian company Niko.

Four university students remain missing since they were allegedly picked up by plainclothes men in the capital's Farmgate area on Saturday, the day before national election.

Their families yesterday held a press conference at Crime Reporters' Association Bangladesh, demanding safe return of the youths.

The missing are: Abu Khaled Mohammad Jabed, 25, a third year student of Bangla at Asian University; Borhan Uddin, 26, English student at Stamford University; Rezaul Khalek, 24, final year student of Pharmacy at Manarat University; and Syed Maminul Hasan, 27, former student of a Unani Ayurvedic Medical College.

“We are very anxious about their fate, as we have been out of contact with them for two days,” said Jabed's brother-in-law Yeasin Karim at the press conference.

He urged law enforcers to rescue the youths or to produce them before the court if they were detained for any crime.

Some plainclothes men identifying themselves as law enforcers dragged them out of a bus in Farmgate on their way home in Mirpur-1 after shopping at Aziz Super Market, Yeasin said quoting a friend of theirs who was also in the bus but escaped detention.

“We contacted local police stations and other wings of law enforcement agencies but all denied picking Jabed up,” he said.

The families drew attention of national and international human rights organisations to be vocal for their release.

Contacted, Abdul Baten, additional commissioner (detectives) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police said they did not detain the youths.

Mufti Mahmud Khan, Rab's Legal and Media wing director also said they did not carry out any drive in Farmgate on that day.

Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader today said BNP has failed to plunge the December 30 national election into controversy even after knocking at the doors of its foreign friends.

“They (BNP) wrote letters to different countries to make the election questionable but their motive has gone in vain,” Quader, also the minister for Road Transport and Bridges, told reporters after visiting construction site of the second Kanchpur Bridge on Dhaka-Chattogram and Dhaka-Sylhet highways in Narayanganj’s Sonargaon upazila.

BNP also completely failed to ensure momentum of their anti-government movement as people did not take to the streets by responding their call, the Awami League leader said.

Replying to a query about BNP’s decision to refrain from participating in the upcoming upazila elections, the minister said no political parity can sustain without taking part in election.

He said the heads of different countries including UK and Switzerland welcomed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina following the formation of government under her leadership for the fourth time.

Claiming that people would not throng the streets responding to the BNP’s call, Quader said BNP is engaged in negative politics and thus it will lose its foreign friends as well as the trust of the countrymen.

Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader today called upon the Jatiya Oikyafront leaders elected in the 11th parliamentary election to take oath accepting people’s verdict.

“I still think that they (Oikyafront) would not dishonour the people’s verdict,” Quader made the call while addressing a press conference at AL President Sheikh Hasina’s Dhanmondi political office in Dhaka this afternoon.

Claiming that BNP made a mistake by not taking part in the January 5, 2014 national election, Quader suggested the Oikyafront leaders not to recur the similar mistake by staying aside from the oath-taking.

BNP yesterday hinted that their leaders elected in the polls will not take oath as they have already rejected the results, alleging mass irregularities including ballot stuffing and ouster of their polling agents from voting centres.

However, Quader said, “This time, it is their (Oikyafront) own matter whether they are satisfied with the people’s verdict.” Quader said that their leaders have also won the election with the people’s mandates.

The Oikyafront yesterday in its formal reaction over the election announced that they would submit memorandum to the Election Commission on Thursday and announce next course of action programme to press home their demand.

Responding to a query in this regard, Quader, also road transport and bridges minister, said BNP does not have any preparation to wage a movement in the country.

“Did you (Journalist) see their (BNP leaders) faces yesterday how nerves and frustrated they were? They have lost their moral strength, how their workers can be rejuvenated by them?” he said.

Responding to a query over the government’s next challenges, he said the government’s main challenge is to implement the manifesto they placed before the election.   

Police evicted protesters demanding fresh election under a non-partisan caretaker government in front of Jatiya Press Club this morning.

Around 40 to 50 people under the banner of ‘National Unity for Franchise and Good Governance’ formed a human chain around 11:00am demanding re-election under a neutral caretaker government, our staff correspondent reports from the spot.

However, police evicted the protesters soon after they gathered there and snatched their banner, said ABM Mostofa Amin, the convener of the platform.

“We cannot accept the kind of rigging that took place in the 11th parliamentary elections. We demand a fresh election be held under a non-partisan caretaker government immediately,” he said.

He alleged that police foiled their peaceful demonstration with a “logical demand”.

THE ELECTION RESULT

The Awami League-led Grand Alliance secured a landslide victory in the national election held on Sunday, December 30, winning in 288 out of 300 seats in the Jatiya Sangsad.

HOW WAS THE ELECTION?

Voting for the 11th parliamentary election ended peacefully in Dhaka; but was tainted with violence elsewhere across the country and cost the lives of at least a dozen people.

Reports of casualties came in from Cumilla, Chattogram, Sylhet, Rajshahi, Dinajpur, Rangamati, Cox’s Bazar, Bogura, Noakhali, Narsingdi and Gazipur.

Allegations of vote rigging, election clashes, intimidation and irregularities came in from several other constituencies and capital Dhaka city.

Also, the election saw opposition candidates boycotting elections in at least 43 constituencies; 42 of who were Jatiya Oikyafront runners.