Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said results would have been much better if the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and equivalent exams had not been affected by hartals and the blockade the BNP-Jamaat-e-Islami alliance enforced.

"Examinees faced serious trouble during the SSC exams due to frequent shifting of their exam schedules," she said after Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid handed over the results of 10 education boards to her at Gono Bhaban.

"Although these blockades and hartals failed to draw people's support, I did not want to risk the lives of SSC examinees. I told the education minister to schedule these exams when there is no blockade and hartal," she said.

Hasina said students suffered a huge loss as the BNP-Jamaat alliance resorted to their "evil activities" right when discipline was brought in the country's academic activities.

"I had hoped that the results would be better than the previous year," she said. This year, the overall pass rate was 87.04 percent. It was 93 percent last year.

However, she said it was a great achievement considering obstructions caused by the BNP-Jamaat alliance's destructive politics.

Strongly warning the BNP-Jamaat alliance to refrain from playing with people's fate, she said no perpetrator would be spared and shown mercy.

Politicians serve the people, work for their welfare, change their fate and resolve their problems. "This is the main goal of independence," she said.

Hasina also said she had never seen politics where the aim was to kill and burn people.

"I was involved in movements all the time but have never seen this kind of movement to kill those people for whom we are engaged in politics...Why will they kill people? Why will they hurl bombs?"

She said of having no idea on the kind of patriotism that leads to killing and burning people and destroying state property.

Hasina recalled the Pakistani occupation army's tactics during the 1971 Liberation War.

"The Pakistani occupation army wanted the land only, not its people. Now we saw such an attitude from (BNP Chairperson) Khaleda Zia. It seemed that she never wanted the people of the country; that's why she gave the order to kill people," Hasina said.

Later, she held a videoconference with local leaders and government officials in Rangamati and Nilphamari districts.