Archive for October, 2008
Friday, October 31st, 2008The Election Commission (EC) will not announce the detailed schedule for the December 18 parliamentary polls on Sunday as declared earlier but said emphatically that the delay would not affect holding of the election on schedule."We will not be able to announce the schedule until the legal dispute over re-demarcation of parliamentary constituencies is resolved," Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) ATM Shamsul Huda told reporters at the EC Secretariat yesterday afternoon.But even if the schedule is deferred, the declared poll date December 18 would not be changed, Huda said, adding, "We have appealed to the court to vacate the High Court ...
(read more) Friday, October 31st, 2008At least 61 people were killed and more than 300 injured yesterday in a dozen blasts that ripped through towns and markets in the insurgency-hit northeastern Indian state of Assam.A police spokesman confirmed a total of 12 explosions within the space of about one hour, six of them in the state's main city of Guwahati.Three other districts in western Assam were also hit.There was no immediate claim of responsibility, although state officials said the bombings may have been the work of the rebel United Liberation Front of Asom (Ulfa), which has been fighting for an independent homeland since 1979.Police were ...
(read more) Friday, October 31st, 2008The Supreme Court (SC) yesterday denied bail to Awami League (AL) President Sheikh Hasina in an extortion case filed by businessman Noor Ali.The refusal came when the full-bench Appellate Division dismissed a petition for permission to appeal against the High Court (HC) order that earlier rejected her bail prayer.A fresh bail prayer was tagged to the leave-to- appeal petition.Defence lawyer Shafique Ahmed described the ruling as unusual. Speaking to reporters, he said the case lacks element strong enough even to frame charge.The five-member bench headed by Chief Justice MM Ruhul Amin snubbed the leave petition on the ...
(read more) Friday, October 31st, 2008The mighty Jamuna appears to be a serious threat to the Jamuna Multipurpose Bridge and many other establishments in five districts as the river is changing its course eroding the western bank in the last few years.This devastating trend of the river is revealed by experts from Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) and Centre for Environmental and Geographic Information Service (CEGIS) after analysing satellite pictures of several years.A survey report by CEGIS says on an average 48 metres of land is eroded on the right side of the 220-kilometre-long Jamuna every year.On the other hand, BWDB Bogra circle survey report ...
(read more) Friday, October 31st, 2008Continued price rise of non-food items contributed to the increase of overall inflation rate by 0.08 percentage point in September to reach 10.19 percent on a point-to-point basis.Although the country witnessed a bumper Boro and Aus production, and commodity prices fell globally, they had no impact on bringing down the inflation.The government and Bangladesh Bank (BB) had earlier predicted that the inflation rate might come down below 9 percent but the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in a recent report said the country's inflation rate would rise to 11 percent.According to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), non-food items witnessed increasing ...
(read more) Friday, October 31st, 2008 Political scientist Dr Emajuddin Ahamed has said political parties must be organised democratically if they want to have a democratic system in the country."The top leaders of the parties must be elected by party workers, not by the party chief alone," he said during an interview with The Daily Star.Being the top leaders of the two biggest political parties, Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina should play a pivotal role in giving other leaders a sense of direction regarding democratic values. "They are the ones who can, by setting examples, rejuvenate democratic culture in the political society," said the ...
(read more) Friday, October 31st, 2008The High Court (HC) yesterday blamed the Election Commission (EC) for getting in the way of completing the hearings of 12 writ petitions which challenge the commission's delimitation of parliamentary constituencies.The bench of justices Mir Hasmat Ali and Shamim Hasnain told EC counsel Shahdeen Malik that the defence is trying to run out the clock by repeating the same arguments again and again.It appears to the court that the EC wants to delay the general election by keeping the petitions pending, the bench added.Shahdeen Malik however told the court that the commission is very sincere in disposing of the ...
(read more) Friday, October 31st, 2008The Election Commission's decision of not announcing the national polls schedule on November 2 as planned earlier has created fresh uncertainty over holding the parliamentary elections on December 18, said Awami League (AL) acting president Zillur Rahman yesterday."It is shocking that the Election Commission said the polls schedule will not be announced on November 2. It will create fresh uncertainty over holding the elections on December 18," he told journalists at his Gulshan residence after a meeting with leaders of Sramik Karmachari Oikya Parishad (SKOP).He said if the election is not held on December 18, the present political crisis ...
(read more) Friday, October 31st, 2008UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is scheduled to arrive tomorrow evening on a two-day official visit to the country.During his visit, the secretary general is scheduled to hold discussions with the government and political leadership, and see for himself the development and disaster management programmes.The talks Ban will be holding with the president, chief adviser and leaders of BNP and Awami League are expected to be dominated by the current political situation, especially the general election on December 18.Foreign Adviser Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury said yesterday that the UN secretary general's visit would be in recognition of various achievements made ...
(read more) Thursday, October 30th, 2008A Dhaka court yesterday finally framed charges against detained former BNP lawmaker Abdus Salam Pintu, Harkatul Jihad (Huji) chief Mufti Abdul Hannan and 20 others in two cases filed for grenade attacks on an Awami League (AL) rally in August 2004.Judge Mohammad Masdar Hossain of the Speedy Trial Tribunal-1 also rejected the discharge petitions of Pintu, Hannan and 12 others in jail custody.The court fixed November 5 for trial of the cases--one for murder and another for bomb blast--and summoned the complainant to appear before it on that date.The grenade attacks on the AL rally on Bangabandhu Avenue on August ...
(read more) 
