The death toll in the raging violence in Bangladesh shot up to 37 as marauding members of a radical Islamic outfit demanding a tougher blasphemy law clashed with police near the capital city, prompting a ban on public rallies and two right-wing TV channels.
Bangladesh Prime minister Sheikh Hasina has accused the "desperate" opposition of "plotting" against her government after the army foiled a coup plot by some "fanatic" serving and retired military officers.
A "heinous" plot to overthrow the Awami League-led government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina by some serving military officers has been foiled and two former officers have been arrested, the Bangladesh army said on Thursday.
Sengupta, a veteran parliamentarian and senior leader of the ruling Awami League, said he was resigning to set an example in the "country's 40 years of history" accepting "the blames of all failures in my shoulder".
The nearly year-long trial of eight suspects at the International Crimes Tribunal in Bangladesh, who have been accused of war crimes during the 1971 war, may not have made headlines in India, but it is attracting huge international attention and further polarising the country's politics.
Mashrafe Mortaza is all set to contest the 11th parliamentary elections of the country on ruling party Awami League's ticket.
Banned terror organisation Jamaat-ud Dawa (JuD) has said that Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan has confirmed his presence at the January 29 Difa-e-Pakistan gathering.
Ahead of Modi's two-day visit, the capital city Dhaka is having a festive look with streets adorned with life-size cutouts of Modi.
Defending his claim that Musharraf had met Chetia, Local Government Minister and ruling Awami League's general secretary Syed Ashraful Islam said, "We've the evidence. We've not made any statement without evidence. I am aware that no comment should be made about a president without any evidence."
Bangladesh's former military dictator HM Ershad was on Thursday led away from his home by security forces and admitted to a military facility in a dramatic move, days after he pulled out of the January 5 general elections.
The Bangladesh cabinet on Wednesday approved a draft law to return land to members of the Hindu families, which were confiscated by the erstwhile Pakistani regime when they fled the country during the 1965 Indo-Pak war.
The separatist organisation, in an e-mail sent to the Bangladeshi news agency, appealed to the government to halt the "crackdown" against the outfit, saying the ruling Awami League of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina should understand its spirit for "independence".
Bangladesh Home Minister Sahara Khatun slammed Pakistan investigation agency's claim that outfits from the country could be involved in the terror attack in the Indian financial capital last year.
Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina Wajed was on Tuesday sworn in as the new prime minister of Bangladesh, a week after her party led grand alliance swept the general elections, winning three fourths of the 300 parliamentary seats.President Iajuddin Ahmad administered the oath of office at Bangabhaban presidential palace, and the event was attended by over a thousand guests including the chief adviser of the interim government, Fakhruddin Ahmed.
The Election Commission has so far announced 'unofficial' results of 295 seats of the 300-seat parliament saying, the Hasina's alliance won 258 seats while her archrival ex-premier Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led four-party grouping won in 31 constituencies.
Bangladesh's former premier Sheikh Hasina Wajed on Thursday left the country, a day after she was "temporary" released under an apparent deal cut with the military-backed government following 11 months in detention on graft charges. Thousands of party activists crowded Dhaka's Zia International Airport where the 60-year-old ailing Awami League leader arrived escorted by heavy security.
Bangladesh's 'battling begums' are on a hectic last minute campaign trail, which will end at midnight on Saturday, as the country's goes for its first general elections in seven years on December 29. The elections are being held under unprecedented security measures with nearly 48,000 troops and more than 600,000 policemen deployed to guard the polling booths.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday warned Bangladeshis against attacking the minority Hindu community, saying such assaults could have repercussions in neighbouring India.
Former premier and Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina returned to Bangladesh on Thursday after five months of medical treatment in the United States to lead her party in general elections scheduled for next month.
Hasina, who is in the United States on a private visit, was expected to return home on April 23.
Former prime minister Khaleda Zia, who was arrested on Monday on graft charges, has been kept just yards away from Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina.
Meanwhile, ex-PM and Miss Khaleda Zia's four-party alliance cautioned that the caretaker government cannot go beyond the constitutional provisions while reforming the election commission.
The latest crackdown on senior AL leaders, including its general secretary Abdul Jalil, and Hasina's cousin Sheikh Selim, known to be loyal to her, has dealt her a severe blow.
She said it was her will-power and determination to return to her motherland, which prevailed upon the caretaker government to withdraw the arrest warrant and ban on her return.
Bangladeshi officials said after questioning HuJI chief Mufty Hannan, they were 'almost sure' that the duo behind several terror attacks in the country had fled to India. The twins were arrested with explosives from New Delhi railway station in February 2006.
"The President has proclaimed emergency using his authority as mentioned in the Article 141 of the Constitution," a presidential spokesman said.
They alleged that free and fair polls were not possible under the present caretaker government.
Former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has initiated a law suit against British Airways, claiming over a million pounds in damages for denying her a boarding pass on April 23 to return to her country.
The warrants were issued in line with a case filed by fundamentalist Jamat-i-Islami party in which it charged Hasina and her party leaders with the murder of their five activists during a political clash on October 28 last year.
The murders took place in October 2006.
Thousands of security personnel were deployed to ward off any violence during the shutdown which coincided with nationwide rallies of the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party against 'anarchy'.
The development came a day after a senior adviser of the interim cabinet Abdul Matin said 'steps' will be taken against Hasina if she returned home.
India and Indians can ignore Pakistan, but that cannot be said of other nations in the neighbourhood, where New Delhi's 'Neighbourhood First' policy constantly reverberates. Four of the eight SAARC member-nations are Muslim -- Afghanistan and Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Maldives. The rulers decide the nation's India or anti-India policy in the first two, and street-opinion contributes to the same in the latter two, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Rahman, 50, was tried in absentia with the court declaring him a "fugitive". He now lives in London where he is believed to have sought asylum though the British authorities have declined to reveal his immigration status.
Awami league is Bangladesh's main opposition party and is headed by Sheikh Hasina Wajed.
Wajed has gone deaf in her right ear after suffering an injury in a grenade attack at a rally last year.
The unofficial results were expected by Monday morning which would be announced by the commission headquarters in the capital.
She had a narrow escape when several bombs exploded in a busy commercial area here minutes after her convoy passed through it.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances