Pre-polls agitation was not mass movement: PM

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday said that the movement unleashed by the BNP-Jamaat to foil the 10th parliamentary elections cannot be called a ‘mass movement’ since people had not responded to such militant and terrorist acts.
“Despite various attempts to foil and deter the election (January 5), people didn’t respond to
those and I extend my thanks to the people of Bangladesh and also express my gratitude to them for helping us assume office again,” she said.
The Prime Minister was speaking before the high officials of the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources at the Ministry conference room at the secretariat. This was her first meeting at the Power Ministry since she assumed office as the Prime Minister for the third time.
Hasina noted that various terrorist and militant acts were unleashed to deter and foil the January 5 elections like killing people through hurling bombs and burning people to death in buses by hurling petrol bombs.
“Such militant and terrorist acts were unleashed. But, there was no ‘mass movement’ in true sense as people had never responded to such destructive and negative acts, rather the country’s people had cast their votes braving hundreds of obstacles,” Hasina added.
She said that even the presiding officers in some areas had to lay down their lives at the hands of hooligans and many institutions were damaged and set on fire, but the voter turnout crossed 40 percent.
PM’s Power and Energy Adviser Dr Towfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, State Minister Nasrul Hamid Bipu, secretaries concerned of the Power Division and Energy and Mineral Resources Division were, among others, present at the meeting.