No midterm election, no dialogue, reiterates PM

NEW YORK, Sept 27 (Agencies): Prime Minister (PM) Sheikh Hasina ruled out the possibility of any midterm election in Bangladesh and holding any dialogue with BNP, as nothing wrong has happened in the country after the January-5 election.
She also dismissed the allegation of having an entente by her government with Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami that came following the recent Supreme Court (SC) verdict commuting its leader Delwar Hossain Sayedee's death sentence to imprisonment unto death.
"Why there should be a midterm election? What are the problems for which we should go for a midterm election and for whom the midterm election? Is it to put the party in power that was created by power usurper Ziaur Rahman?" she questioned.
The PM was responding to a volley of questions from Bangladeshi journalists living in New York. Bangladesh Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York organised the press conference at its office Friday.
Talking about dialogue with BNP, now out of Parliament as it boycotted the January-5 national election, Hasina said she has nothing to do as per the parliamentary form of democracy for the party which is outside parliament. "What's dialogue? With whom?" she asked.
About the reduction of Sayeede's punishment and allegation of her government's entente with Jamaat, she said if there is any sort of entente how there will be trial of that person. "It's the court that takes the decision whether there'll be a capital punishment or not."
Hasina also mentioned that the judiciary in Bangladesh is completely independent. "We can't interfere in the judiciary. If the independent judiciary gives its verdict how there could be an entente?" she questioned.
In this connection, Hasina said it is the AL government that has put the war criminals under the trial. "Did any other party take the initiative? They rather made these people ministers and allowed them to fly the national flag on their vehicles.
When her attention was drawn to the recent remarks of BNP leader Khaleda Zia at a public meeting in Brahmanbaria asking the ruling party leaders, including Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, to get ready with their passports and visas so that they could flee the country hurriedly to avert public wraths, Hasina said she never fled the country.
In this connection, the Prime Minister said that Bangladesh is her birthplace while Khaleda Zia was born in a tea garden of Shiliguri (India). "So I don't need to take visa, she needs it."
Responding to a question regarding corruption, she said the present government is always aware about graft.
In this regard, the PM pointed out that international vested quarters had tried to prove that her government was corrupt. "I'm talking about the Padma Bridge. The World Bank stopped funding saying that there was a huge corruption in the project. But I threw a challenge that there was no corruption."
Describing the advancement in various sectors of Bangladesh, including the economy, power, education during the AL rule, she said had there been any corruption the country would not have been able to march forward.
Ban Ki-moon, Biswal praise Hasina
Meanwhile, friends of Bangladesh, including United Nations (UN) Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, showered praises on Prime Minister (PM) Sheikh Hasina for her invaluable contribution to world peace and security side by side with stellar development in the country.
They also lauded Sheikh Hasina for her firm stance against terrorism and militancy and achieving millennium development goals (MDGs) by Bangladesh in different fields.
"Your role in establishing world peace and security is praiseworthy," the UN secretary general said at a gala function here marking the 40th anniversary of Bangladesh's membership to the United Nations.
Apart from Ban Ki-moon, UN Under Secretary General Ameerah Haq, United States (US) Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs Nisha Desai Biswal, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennadiy Gatilov, UK Ambassador to the US Peter Westmacott, senior official of the Ministry of External Affairs of India Binod Kumar, UNDP Administrator Helen Clark and UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova also spoke on the occasion.
Appreciating the leadership of Sheikh Hasina, Ban Ki-moon said Bangladesh made important gains in the MDGs.
"I hope that the trend of Bangladesh's development would continue under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina," he said.