Govt wants to hold on to power: Khaleda

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia yesterday said the government is trying to hold the next parliamentary election under its own arrangement aiming to cling to power.
Speaking at an iftar party, she also said the government could not do anything good for the people during its four-and-a-half-year rule.
Categorically mentioning that the Awami League will not be allowed to hold the election while in power, she said, “The next parliamentary election must be held under a non-party government.”
Bikalpa Dhara Bangladesh (BDB) organised the party in honour of the country's politicians and distinguished citizens at Bashundhara Convention Centre in the capital.
Khaleda urged the government to reinstate the caretaker government system in the constitution to create a level-playing field during the polls. “All the political parties will participate in the election if it is held under a neutral government,” she said.
Claiming that holding the parliamentary elections under a non-party caretaker government is now a demand of the mass people, the BNP chairperson said the party which will win the polls under a neutral government will govern the country. "We all have to accept it,” she said.
Mentioning that the country is in a sordid state, the former premier said the government did nothing for development of the country and its people.
Earlier, BDB chief Badruddoza Chowdhury said the country will be pushed towards a great crisis if the government does not accept the demand for the caretaker government system.
Krishak Sramik Janata League President Abdul Kader Siddiqui and Nagorik Oikya convener Mahmudur Rahman Manna also joined the iftar party.