Archive for September 26th, 2006
Tuesday, September 26th, 2006An uncertainty suddenly raised its head regarding the executions of seven condemned militants of Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh, as the government yesterday said it has no intention of executing them before Eid-ul-Fitr even if they do not appeal within seven days of signing of the death warrants.Law Minister Barrister Moudud Ahmed said yesterday that the government does not want to execute anyone during Ramadan.Whether the executions can be carried out before the present government hands over power on October 28 has also become a topic of discussion as many are inquiring whether the government is going to shift from its previous ...
(read more) Tuesday, September 26th, 2006In case of a dialogue on the electoral reforms taking place, the 14-party opposition combine might propose the name of former chief justice Mahmudul Amin Chowdhury as the chief of the next caretaker government.Sources said if the government really wants to settle the ongoing political dispute through talks and in the process, Justice Mahmudul Amin Chowdhury's name comes up as an alternative to Justice KM Hasan, the opposition might accept it.The opposition parties have already decided to go for an intense non-cooperation movement in the form of an indefinite hartal from the day Justice KM Hasan would take the charge ...
(read more) Tuesday, September 26th, 2006A project to phase in waterways around the capital has once again been deferred at a recent Ecnec meeting while a government evaluation report had strongly recommended the work to solve the persistent waterlogging and traffic congestion.About Tk 36 crore has already been spent on opening a waterway from Sadarghat to Ashulia. But the second phase of the project estimated to cost Tk 103 crore for a waterway from Ashulia to Demra was deferred at the September 14 meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec).In December last year, Ecnec had declined to approve the second phase ...
(read more) Tuesday, September 26th, 2006Rejecting the government's demand for compensation for losses from the Tengratila blowout, Canadian company Niko Resources last month formally asked the government to settle the issue through an international arbitration.Sources said following the August 15 letter from Niko, the government is making preparation to take the matter to the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes.The letter came at a time when the government is at the final stage of signing a Gas Purchase Sales Agreement (GPSA) for purchasing gas from the Feni marginal gas field, jointly developed by Niko and Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration Company (Bapex). The Petrobangla has ...
(read more) Tuesday, September 26th, 2006The parliament yesterday passed Bangladesh Labour Bill 2006 amid strong protest from the main opposition Awami League (AL) followed by an AL walkout led by its leader Sheikh Hasina.The main opposition walked out of the House yesterday protesting a parliamentary standing committee report on the bill which did not include a note of dissent of an AL lawmaker and failed to mention a subsequent walkout of the dissenting member of the committee from a meeting.Abdul Kader Siddiqui of Krishok Sramik Janata League also walked out of the House yesterday protesting the speaker's attitude. "The record of the note of ...
(read more) Tuesday, September 26th, 2006British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Anwar Choudhury yesterday expressed his hope that all political parties will reach a consensus on the reforms issue to ensure free and fair general elections."We see some signs that both the ruling and the opposition parties are easing up... and it is not too late for coming to a consensus," he said while speaking as the chief guest at a dialogue on media and diaspora organised by Refugee and Migratory Movement Research Unity (RMMRU) and British Council at the latter's auditorium.The UK, as a close friend of Bangladesh, will do everything it can so that ...
(read more) Tuesday, September 26th, 2006The capital yesterday experienced a daylong traffic jam stretching from almost its one end to the other and creating chaos on all the major thoroughfares as commuters suffered badly on the third day of the Traffic Month.Thousands of vehicles got stuck in gridlock for hours on the streets from Jatrabari to Banani with lakhs of commuters having to wait not knowing when it would end."I am totally helpless," said a traffic sergeant at Karwan Bazar roundabout where vehicles stood still in all directions. "You go wherever and however you want," he shrugged to this correspondent expressing his helplessness.Narrating his ...
(read more) Tuesday, September 26th, 2006The opposition lawmakers in parliament yesterday blasted the government for acute electricity crisis across the country and said the people will suffer even more in the Ramadan due to the worsening power situation. State Minister for Power Anwarul Kabir Talukdar faced a volley of questions on power crisis during the question-answer session yesterday.Acknowledging the irregularities in the sector, he said, "Hopefully, there will be no crisis in the power sector after 2020."Replying to a query from ruling BNP lawmaker Halima Newaz Arly, the state minister said the power situation will begin to improve from the year 2009.He said ...
(read more) Tuesday, September 26th, 2006BNP Secretary General Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan said he made two phone calls to Awami League (AL) General Secretary Abdul Jalil and he would make the third if necessary for holding the secretary general-level talks to resolve the reforms issue.Bhuiyan returned home from Singapore last night."I've already made two phone calls and made formal proposals for the dialogue...if I get their positive response, I'll talk to my party and fix a date and time for talks," he told reporters at Zia International Airport.He said, "Since I've already called twice, there is no need to send any letter...if necessary, I can ...
(read more) Tuesday, September 26th, 2006A Dhaka court yesterday sentenced Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) military commander Ataur Rahman Sunny and four others to 11 years' rigorous imprisonment and acquitted one in an August 17 bomb blast case.The four other accused are Rezaul Haq Reza of Jamalpur, Habibur Rahman Habib and Abdullah Al Shohail of Gazipur and Mohammad Sagir Hossain of Dhaka.Sunny, Reza and Shohail were present in the court during the delivery of the judgment while Habib and Sagir were tried in absentia.Judge SM Mojibur Rahman of the First Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court handed down the verdict at a packed courtroom.The court acquitted Mustafizur ...
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