No talks with Khaleda, reiterates Hasina

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

"What's the dialogue with her? What dialogue with the person who is a killer, who has got blood in her hands, whose hands are stinking with the bad smell of burning people?" she asked.

The prime minister was speaking at a grand rally of Bangladesh Peshajibi Samonnay Parishad at Krishibid Institution Bangladesh.

Bangladesh Peshajibi Samannoy Parishad President Justice AFM Mesbah Uddin Ahmed presided over the meeting. Its Secretary General Prof Dr Kamrul Hasan Khan delivered the welcome speech.

Sheikh Hasina, also the president of the ruling Awami League, said that Khaleda Zia killed infants and expectant mothers as she does not consider people as human beings. "On top of that, she's the leader of militants, and who will hold dialogue with the militant leader Khaleda?" she questioned.

Before the January-5 election, the prime minister said, she had invited Khaleda Zia to hold a dialogue, but she rejected it. "I had tried a lot. I asked to participate in the election, even I offered to involve BNP in the election-time government with some ministries, but she didn't respond."

Hasina advised the BNP leader to surrender before the court as an arrest warrant has been issued. "I'll advise her to surrender, that's better for her," she said.

The AL chief also said if Khaleda does not surrender before the court the government is bound to act as per the court order. "And that order will be implemented in time," she said.

Hasina said her government will do whatever is needed to end the ongoing miserable days that has been created by Khaleda Zia. "This is our commitment," she said adding that she needs cooperation from all in this connection.

The prime minister asked the BNP leader that she has no right to indulge in things that only bring bad for the people of the country. "People won't accept this, they won't tolerate it," she said.

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

"Yes, we had also carried out our movement, but with support from the mass 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 on the same year.

Reiterating that boycotting the 10th general election was a political mistake of Khaleda Zia, Hasina said now she wanted to take revenge on people.

"Why do people have to pay for Khaleda's wrong decision? It's not easy to play with the fate of people of Bangladesh, at least, I won't allow this as long as I'm alive," she added.

Mentioning Khaleda Zia's dependency on others to be in the power again, she said Khaleda did not get any support from anywhere.

"She didn't get any response from those on whom she is dependent-north or west, no country responded to her call, no quarter because of her militant character, no one can support burning people," she said.

Bangladesh Peshajibi Samannoy Parishad Presidium members and PM's Media Adviser Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury, Attorney General Mahbubey Alam, Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor Prof AAMS Arefin Siddique, Dr Mahbub Hasan, AFM Bahauddin Nasim, MP, architect Habibur Rahman, Dr AQM Sirajul Islam and Anisur Rahman Khan, among others, also spoke on the occasion.