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The Bangladesh Nationalist Party and its allies Jamaat-e-Islami and Islami Oikya Jote will apply for registration with the Election Commission before the submission deadline expires this afternoon, alliance leaders said.
   The highest policy making bodies of BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami Sunday evening approved draft amendments to party constitutions in line with the criteria set by the Election Commission under the amended Representation of People Order.
   BNP standing committee sources said, the amendments to the party constitution include: make a balance of power between the party chairperson and the standing committee, keeping 33 per cent of all committee positions reserved for women, finalisation of nomination of candidates by the party’s parliamentary board from lists forwarded by district committees, keeping no affiliated bodies consisting of students, labourers and other professions and keeping no foreign units.
   There will, however, be no bar on any individual or group of individuals forming associated bodies and foreign units upholding ideals of the party. These bodies and units are free to run by their own constitutions, according to the amendments to the party constitution.
   The BNP standing committee also approved a resolution that the party would submit a ratified copy of the party constitution to the Election Commission within six months of the first sitting of the ninth parliament.
   ‘The standing committee has approved draft amendments necessary for registration [with the Election Commission],’ BNP standing committee member M Saifur Rahman told reporters after the meeting. Committee members M Shamsul Islam and RA Gani echoed.
   BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia presided over the one-and-half-hour meeting beginning at 9:00 pm at her Gulshan office.
   The party, which was to decide on registration after holding the second round of formal dialogue with the commission, suddenly changed its stance as the commission and the military-controlled interim government stuck to their position not to defer the deadline for registration again, according to party insiders.
   ‘Tomorrow [Monday] is the last date for applying for registration. So we will apply for registration to thwart the conspiracy to keep us away from elections on the excuse of non-registration,’ BNP secretary general Khandaker Delwar Hossain said Sunday afternoon.
   ‘There were attempts in the past to split the BNP. And now a conspiracy is on to keep the party out of the incoming general elections,’ he added.
   According to the latest amendments to the Representation of People Order, registration with the commission is mandatory for the parties to contest the elections.
   Asked about the change in party’s stance the day before the deadline expires, Delwar said the party wanted further discussion with the government about the demands for removal of some electoral provisions which are inconsistent to the national constitution. ‘But we are yet to receive any response from the government about the next round of dialogue,’ Delwar said.
   Asked about the party’s stance on participating in the polls under the state of emergency, he said the registration with the EC and the question of participation in the elections were not the same.
   ‘We will apply for registration to qualify for participating in elections. The decision on contesting the elections will be taken later on after considering the overall atmosphere,’ he said.
   The BNP will not participate in any stage-managed elections, he reiterated. ‘We want lifting of the state of emergency before the polls, participated by all parties, including two leaders — Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina,’ he said.
   Jamaat-e-Islami assistant secretary general Muhammad Kamaruzzaman told New Age that the party would submit application for registration with the EC today.
   The Jatiya Nirbahi Parishad approved draft amendments to the party constitution at a meeting Sunday evening, he said. Jamaat amir Matiur Rahman Nizami presided over the meeting.
   The amendments are made in line with the requirements of the RPO 2008, he said.
   Islami Oikya Jote secretary general Abdul Latif Nezami said they would also apply for registration today.
   Earlier on the day, BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami collected the registration forms from the EC.
   The EC extended the deadline for submitting application for registration from October 15 to October 20 responding to requests from BNP and Jamaat. Chief election commissioner ATM Shamsul Huda earlier said that the commission would not further extend the deadline for applying for registration.
   A total of 192 political parties and groups collected forms for registration and 43 of them including the Awami League submitted applications to the EC until Sunday

Numerous organisations across the country on Sunday went out on demonstrations condemning the removal of the monument of baul sculptures in the airport crossing in Dhaka and demanding rebuilding of the monument.
   The Conscious Artistes’ Society, a platform of sculptors, painters, singers and artistes, on Sunday demanded formation of a national committee to work out a policy to place similar sculptures across the country.
   They made the demand as the platform began a two-day cultural programme at Bakultala at the fine arts faculty at Dhaka University in protest against the removal of the baul sculptures.
   Songs were sung in the cultural programme, the theme of which was ‘Ensure free atmosphere for study of arts and culture.’
   Singer Krishnakali read out a statement of the society, in which she said, ‘We strongly protest against the removal of the baul sculptures in response to the pressure of the fundamentalists. But we do not only want re-installation of the sculptures, but also want a national committee to deal with the installation of sculptures.’
   Sculptor Moniruzzaman later said, ‘The fundamentalist forces have long been launching attacks on the culture.’
   ‘The recent removal of the baul sculptures is not an isolated event. A political game may have been played behind the scenes. Why did the incident take place at a time when the whole nation was preparing for the general elections and the restitution of democracy?’ he said.
   Another sculptor, Shawon Akand, said, ‘Sculptures are installed haphazardly at the whim of whoever is in power. This should not be so. There must be a specific guideline on sculpture installation.’
   He also blamed the interim government for siding with the fundamentalist forces, saying, ‘The role of the government in the removal of baul sculptures is lamentable.’
   ‘The ultra-religious forces launched one attack after another on our culture and heritage, but governments remained silent,’ said Anusheh.
   Charan Sangskritik Kendra at a news briefing at the central Bangladesher Samajtantrik Dal office on Sunday condemned the removal of baul sculptures and demanded punishment of the Muslim bigots who forced the government to dismantle the sculptures.
   The organisation will also go out on demonstrations across the country on October 23 and form a human chain in Muktangan in Dhaka to push for the re-installation of the sculptures.
   The New Age correspondent in Rajshahi said 107 teachers of Rajshahi University in a statement issued on Sunday demanded re-installation of the sculptures.
   The correspondent at Chittagong University said the leaders and activists of left-leaning student organisations based in the university, under the banner of Progressive Students’ Alliance, protested against the removal of sculptures.
   They brought out processions and formed a human chain in the university station area at around 12:30pm, demanding immediate re-installation of the sculptures.
   The New Age correspondent in Barisal said several political and socio-cultural organisations, including the Barisal Reporter’s Unity, Sangskritik Sangathan Samanway Parishad, Group Theatre Federation and BM College Journalists’ Association condemned the removal of the sculptures and the bigot’s hatred of the Bengali culture and tradition.
   Students’ organisations such as the Bangladesh Chhatra League, Chhatra Maitree, Chhatra Union and Pragatishil Chhatra Oikya went out on demonstrations, held rallies and brought out processions on the BM College campus in Barisal.
   The New Age correspondent in Khulna said various organisations in the city protested against the removal of the sculptures and demanded immediate reinstallation of them.

Muslim bigots in Barisal on Sunday demanded that the construction of a sculpture named Bijay Bihanga, or the bird of victory being set up in the city marking the liberation of Barisal from the Pakistani forces in 1971, should be immediately stopped.
   The bigots, in a statement signed by 101 leaders of Masjid-Madrassah-Khanqah Sangrakshan Committee, Imam Samiti, Qur’an Sangrakshan Committee, Islamic Constitution Movement, Mujahid Committee, Jamaat-e-Islami, Khelafat Majlis and other politico-religious organisations, announced that no idols in the name of sculpture could be constructed.
   Political and socio-cultural organisations in Barisal, meanwhile, condemned the move of the bigots and said they were ready to resist any such moves.
   They called on the Barisal City Corporation to spend funds on the development of corporation services and not on the construction of idols.
   The Barisal mayor, Shawkat Hossain Hiron, on Sunday said the demand of the bigots was illogical as the design of Bijay Bihanga was earlier discussed with and approved by the leaders of religious organisations.
   As the sculpture has no human figures, the clerics earlier agreed to allow the corporation to carry out the sculpture project, which is set to be inaugurated on December 8, the day in 1971 when Barisal was freed, Shawkat said.
   Assistant commissioner Hayatul Islam of the Barisal Metropolitan Police said if the corporation wanted, they could provide security for the construction of the sculpture. He said the police could also ensure security for the sculpture after its inauguration.
   Shawkat inaugurated the construction of Bijay Bihanga, the first sculpture on the war of independence in Barisal, at a cost of Tk 10.07 lakh in the Amtala crossing of the city on September 24. The project is funded by the Barisal City Corporation.
   Barisal Sangskritik Sangathan Samanway Parishad and painter’s forum Charukala is giving assistance to the construction of the sculpture, designed by Hamiduzzaman Khan and Aminul Hassan. The project is carried out by the Dhaka-based State Communications Firm.
   Barisal Sangskritik Sangathan Samanway Parishad, Group Theatre Federation, Barisal Muktijoddha Sangsad, Nagarik Parishad, educationists, rights activists, non-governmental organisations, Barisal Metropolitan Journalists’ Union, meanwhile, condemned the move of the clerics.
   Leaders of the organisations said they did not want to give much importance to the statement, but they were ready to resist any move of the bigots against the construction of Bijay Bihanga.
   The elite in Barisal and socio-cultural activists said after the bigots had forced the government to pull down the baul monument in Dhaka, now they started a venture against the culture of the country as no governments had tried the war criminals.
   The first attempt at the construction of a sculpture on the war of independence in Barisal was taken up in 1996. The foundation for the project was laid out in the area of the Zila Parishad and Nagar Bhaban. The government of the time later ditched the project.
   Some Muslim bigots in Dhaka on Wednesday forced the government authorities to dismantle a monument of bauls on the roundabout at Zia International Airport after they had tried to raze and rallied against the sculpture.
   On Thursday, they demanded that the baul sculptures, designed and set up by Mrinal Haque, should be replaced with a Hajj minaret. The bigots at a briefing on Friday said sculptures and statues were against Islamic values and asked the government to remove all such statures and threatened taking the matter in their own hands, otherwise.
   Sulptors, painters, artistes, writers and the students and teachers at Dhaka University have since then holding protest rallies against the removal of the baul monument and demanded re-installation of the sculptures.

The Awami League on Sunday reiterated that it would not contest the parliamentary elections, scheduled for December 18, if the state of emergency remained in force and the party president Sheikh Hasina was not released permanently before the polls.
   The AL leaders at protest rallies across the country on the day said they wanted the interim government to give the party a firm assurance by October 30 about Hasina’s permanent release, or, they warned, the party would not start formal electioneering and continue its movement until the demands were met.
   The AL staged protest rallies in Dhaka city and other district towns to push for unconditional release of Sheikh Hasina. The AL central working committee announced the programme on October 13 demanding withdrawal of all ‘false and fabricated’ cases against the party chief.
   At the central rally held at the Institution of Engineers in the capital, acting AL president Zillur Rahman announced that the party would not contest the upcoming elections under the state of emergency and without Sheikh Hasina’s participation.
   He also said that the AL would not hold any council session as long as Hasina remained behind bars. ‘We will continue the movement until our demand is realised’, he added.
   Addressing the rally, AL presidium member Amir Hossain Amu gave the interim government until October 30 to come up with a firm assurance about Hasina’s permanent release. ‘We are not going to start electioneering until the assurance comes.’
   He hoped the government would accept the AL’s demands for the sake of free, fair and credible elections.
   ‘The government’s activities have raised doubts in the people minds if national elections will be held on the date announced by it’, Amu said.
   Presidium member Abdur Razzak said urged the party leaders and activists to remain united to thwart the conspiracies to foil elections.
   He said the nation was eagerly awaiting the ‘landmark event’ of December 18 polls and reminded the caretaker government that the people accepted it till now ‘but will not accept this government after December 18’.
   Party presidium member Tofail Ahmed termed the emergency as a major obstacle to participatory and credible elections and demanded its immediate withdrawal.
   He cautioned the party activists that conspiracies were being hatched to foil elections and said ‘the government
   will be compelled to hold the polls on the date it has announced.’
   AL presidium member Matia Chowdhury said the party, if voted to power, would endorse the ‘good deeds and decisions’ of the interim administration but not the ‘misdeeds and the wrong decisions’.
   The party’s acting general secretary Syed Ashraful Islam said national elections must be held on the date announced by the chief adviser, otherwise, he warned, the country would face an uncertain future.
   He demanded withdrawal of the emergency as ‘the people no longer want it’.
   He also asked the government to withdraw all ‘false’ cases filed against Sheikh Hasina without further delay.
   Party leaders Mukul Bose, Abdul Mannan, Mahamudur Rahman Manna, Sultan Mohammad Munsur Ahmed, Abdur Rahman, MA Aziz and Quamrul Islam spoke at the rally. Asim Kumar Ukil conducted the programme.
   New Age correspondent in Khulna reported that the Awami League’s district unit had held a protest rally at its office in the city demanding unconditional release of Sheikh Hasina.
   The rally was presided over by the acting president of district AL Gazi Shamsul Islam and addressed, among others, by party leaders Begum Monnujan Sufian and Mizanur Rahman.
   New Age correspondent in Jessore reported that the AL district unit had formed a human chain in the town to press home the demand.
   New Age correspondent at Jahangirnagar University reported that the university unit of Bangladesh Chhatra League had staged demonstrations on the campus on Sunday morning demanding permanent release of Sheikh Hasina and withdrawal of the state of emergency.
   Speakers at the rally warned that the interim government would be responsible for the consequences if the demands were not met immediately.
   BCL leaders Azizur Rahman, Abdul Hadi Sharif, Adnan Ayan, KM Siam Khalid, Palash, Mallik and Asad spoke.

Awami League leaders on Sunday clarified to election officials the party’s constitutional provision of keeping associate organisations.
   A two-member delegation led by the party’s office secretary Abdul Mannan Khan appeared before the Election Commission’s technical committee to explain the provision, deemed contradictory to the EC’s registration criteria that forbid front organisations and overseas branches of political parties.
   The technical committee, headed by EC’s joint secretary (law), scrutinised the application forms so far submitted by the political parties for registration and sought clarifications from Awami League and some other parties for some data and provisions.
   Mannan claimed that AL’s provision of keeping associated organisations would not contradict the registration criteria.
   ‘I think we have been able to convince the technical committee that the particular provision of our party’s constitution won’t contradict the registration criteria,’ he told reporters after meeting the EC committee.
   The party would submit its bank statements in a day or two as asked by the EC.
   The Awami League earlier tailored its constitution to the criteria set by the amended Representation of the People Order 1972 and reworded certain provisions to accommodate associate organisations, saying those would work independently and be guided by their own constitutions.
   Article 90(B)-(b)(iii) of the amended RPO says every political party should have specific provisions in its constitution ‘to prohibit formation of any organisation or body as its affiliated or associated body consisting of the teachers or students of any educational institution or the employees or labourers of any financial, commercial or industrial institution or establishment or the members of any other profession.
   A total of 192 political parties and groups collected forms for registration and 43 of them including Awami League submitted the forms along with required documents to the EC until Sunday.
   The submission deadline was to expire on October 15, which was later extended to October 20, apparently to make room for BNP and its allies, which were refusing registration until Sunday.
   The parties and groups which have so far applied for registration include Awami League, Bangladesh Krishak Sramik Janata League, Bangladesh Krishak Sramik Awami League, Workers Party of Bangladesh, Bangladesher Samyabadi Dal (M-L), Liberal Democratic Party, Freedom Party, Jatiya Party faction led by Anwar Hossain Manju, Bangladesh Kalyan Party, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal, Bangladesh Islami Oikya Front, Communist Party of Bangladesh, Bikalpadhara Bangladesh, National Awami Party, Jatiya Party led by Ershad, Oikyabadha Nagorik Andolon, Ganatantri Party, Bangladesh Samajtantrik Dal and Progressive Democratic Party.
   The commission on August 27 issued a notice inviting political parties to apply for registration in a prescribed form.
   The amended RPO makes registration a must for parties willing to contest the national polls planned on December 18.

The police on Sunday attacked Dhaka University students protesting against the increased price of admission forms. At least nine students were injured.
   The protests and the clash suspended the sales of the admission forms for about six hours and the university authorities could resume sales at around 2:00pm after they had acceded to the Progressive Students’ Alliance demand for keeping the admission form price same for 10 years.
   Although sale of the forms was scheduled to start at 9:00am, it was halted because of demonstrations by the Progressive
   Students’ Alliance, a combine of left-leaning student organisations, against the increased price of the forms.
   The demonstrators chanted slogans and tried to convince the admission seekers not to buy admission forms and at about 11:00am they sat in front the main gate of the Janata Bank at the Teacher-Student Centre and closed it.
   Hundreds of admission seekers and their guardians were waiting for almost four hours as many of them wanted to buy the forms in spite of higher cost as they thought it was rational to increase the price. ‘We are depressed by this situation as we think it is rational to increase the price. Many of us have come from far places like Uttara and Badda. So, it is tough for us to come again another day,’ said Mitul, who went there to collect forms.
   As the activists of the combine, in accordance with their scheduled programme, besieged the university branches of Sonali, Agrani and Janata banks and obstructed the sales of forms, the police charged at them with truncheons, which led to clashes between the lawmen and the students.
   Sangeeta Barai, Sohel Rana, Biplob Mandal, Mumtahina, Sohan Sobhan, Rahat Ahmed, Rajib Iqbal, Liton and Rokhsana, all students of Dhaka University, were injured in the clash.
   After the clash, the authorities held a meeting with the leaders of the combine at noon in the office of the vice-chancellor.
   At the meeting, the combine, however, reached a compromise deal with the authorities: the price of a form, which was Tk 250 in 2007 but had been raised by Tk 50, would be Tk 300 and the price would not be increased in the next 10 years.
   The leaders announced the decision after the meeting with the vice-chancellor, SMA Faiz, in the afternoon.
   The leaders said the vice-chancellor had assured them that all the other fees would be set at an acceptable and reasonable rate.
   When they were asked about what their position would be if the next administration violates the promise, the Bangladesh Chhatra Union president, Khan Asaduzzaman Masum, evaded the question and said the university authorities would need to keep their word as three of the deans and the proctor attended the meeting.
   Arts dean Sadrul Amin, social sciences dean Harun-or-Rashid, business studies dean Abbas Ali Khan and proctor Feroz Ahmed were present at the meeting with the student leaders.
   Fifteen were, meanwhile, injured as madrassah students, who tried to lay siege to the Janata Bank branch on the Dhaka University campus on Sunday to stop the sales of admission forms, clashed with the police.
   The madrassah students, joined in by the students of Arabic, Persian and Urdu departments at the university, on Saturday vandalised the vice-chancellor’s office after they had met the vice-chancellor, SMA Faiz, and demanded that the admission rules should be changed.
   The university authorities late Saturday night suspended two university students for their involvement in the vandalism of the vice-chancellor’s office.

The government has avoided a concrete decision on sales of toxic milk brands and opted to wait for further test results, leaving the question whether or not to consume the melamine-added baby formulas to individual’s choice until then.
   Though the chemistry department of Dhaka University repeatedly stood by its test results detecting presence of melamine in samples of eight foreign milk powder brands, the commerce ministry has said that was not enough for ordering a ban on sales or withdrawal of the products from shelves.
   ‘We are not in a position right now to make any conclusion as there was significant variation in the test reports prepared by three organisations,’ commerce secretary Feroz Ahmed said after a meeting Sunday.
   The meeting was expected to deliver concrete guidelines for anxious consumers about which milk brands they should choose for their babies after the latest test confirmed melamine in most-selling eight brands.
   But it ended up in deciding to form a 12-memebr committee and assign it to supervise further tests of the same batch of disputed milk brand samples in two local and one foreign laboratories, and report back to the ministry in seven working days.
   Asked if the people should continue to consume the milk brands in question until then, the commerce secretary left it to the consumers’ choice saying that it was an individual decision whether to buy them or not.
   ‘We will not take any liability,’ he said as he was asked whether the government would bear the responsibility for public health hazards in case the brands are found melamine positive in further tests.
   He rather reminded a questioner about the ministry’s ‘responsibility’ to look into the interests of the companies and their agents which invested crores of taka in the business.
   Asked whether the ministry told the companies and their agents to keep their sales suspended during the period of testing, the commerce secretary said they [companies] claimed that there was no existence of melamine in their tests.
   After a test by Dhaka University’s chemistry department had found presence of industrial chemical melamine in eight particular brands of imported milk powder, the government on October 16 advised the people to refrain from using them.
   The brands are Sweetbaby, Yashli-1, Yashli-2, New Zealand’s Nido Fortified Instant, Anlin, Australia’s Diploma and Red Cow and Dano of Denmark.
   Abu Zafar Mahmud, a professor of chemistry at Dhaka University, stood by the test report prepared by the department. He, however, said that it would unscientific not to give others’ opportunity to debate and make repeat tests.
   The commerce secretary mentioned that repeat tests would be conducted at two local laboratories and one accredited laboratory abroad and accordingly, the 12-member committee would submit a report to the government for taking necessary action.
   The committee will be comprised of two representatives from the DU chemistry department, three from the Bangladesh Automatic Energy Commission, three from the Bangladesh Council of Scientific and Industrial Research [Science Laboratory], two from Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution and one each from the health ministry and private laboratory PlasmaPlus.
   The samples will be collected from the market by a ‘neutral committee’ comprising representatives from commerce, health and industries ministries, BSTI and also from the respective companies.
   Based on laboratory tests, the experts’ committee will examine whether the powdered milk contained melamine and assess the level of contamination and the possible health risks, the secretary said.
   Meanwhile, the council of adviser, at a meeting with chief adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed in the chair Sunday, expressed concern at the situation arising out of the melamine contamination of imported powder milk, mostly consumed by children, and asked the authorities concerned to settle the issue within the shortest possible time.

Parents and consumer rights leaders were frustrated to see that a crucial meeting of the commerce ministry Sunday failed to come up with a concrete decision on toxic milk brands and left the issue to individual’s choice.
   The commerce ministry just decided to form a 12-member committee and wait for a week more for further test results before taking any decision on the sales of eight baby milk brands, tested melamine positive by Dhaka University’s chemistry department.
    ‘I leave it to individual’s choice whether they will buy baby milk or not,’ commerce secretary Feroz Ahmed told reporters after the meeting.
   He said variations in test results done in different laboratories prevented the government from reaching any conclusion.
   Anxious consumers were confused by an earlier government notification advising them to avoid consumption of eight brands, while marketers of those milk powder brands through front-page newspaper advertisements were claiming that their products were safe.
   On the other hand, Dhaka University’s chemistry department repeatedly stood by its test results detecting presence of melamine in those brands.
   ‘I was expecting that the government would immediately free us from anxiety, but it rather added to our confusion,’ said Sharmeen Ahmed Sumi, a resident of the city’s Maghbazar, who stopped feeding her one-year son powdered milk since the melamine test results were made public.
   Emdad Hossain Malek, chief of market monitoring cell at the Consumer Association of Bangladesh, said tests and decisions were taking a long time, pushing consumers deep into panic and confusion.
   ‘If the authorities were serious enough, they could arrange tests of all bands much earlier as the first case of melamine was detected in Chinese milk about a month ago,’ he said.
   They could have the tests done in other countries if they found local labs under-equipped, the consumer rights campaigner said.
   Meanwhile, officials of leading milk brand producing companies and their local marketing agents Sunday met Mahbub Jamil, special assistant to chief adviser for industrial affairs.
   Officials of the Demark-based Arla Food Ingredients, which markets Dano brand, Switzerland-based Nestle, marketer of Nido and New Zealand Milk Products that markets Diploma and Red Cow brands told him that their products were melamine-free.

The education ministry on Sunday cancelled its earlier order for educational institutions in Dhaka to begin classes at 7:30am and decided to instruct them to start classes any time between 7:00am and 8:30am.
   Chaired by the education adviser, Hossain Zillur Rahman, a meeting at the ministry in the afternoon made the decision in the presence of the education secretary and a number of the heads of city schools and colleges.
   In line with a decision made at a July 29 meeting chaired by the chief adviser, Fakhruddin Ahmed, the education ministry early in August asked all the educational institutions in the Dhaka metropolitan area to begin classes at 7:30am as part of a move to ease traffic congestion.
   The ministry also decided not to allow establishment of any new educational institutions on any important, busy and VIP roads and in residential areas as part of the government efforts to address city traffic congestion.
   In an August 22 directive, the chief adviser asked all who attended a meeting on the issue on the day to implement the order by September 30.
   Sources close to education adviser and the education secretary told New Age immediately after the decision on beginning classes at 7:30am, an adviser to the interim government and a special assistant to the chief adviser started opposing it.
   ‘The adviser and the special assistant argued the new decision would hamper greatly students of English-medium schools,’ an education ministry official said.
   ‘The ministry on October 9, however, formed 12 vigilance teams with 36 officials led by 12 deputy secretaries to strictly enforce the directive of beginning classes at 7:30am,’ the official said. ‘The teams were asked to visit educational institutions separately and submit reports to the ministry by October 20.’
   ‘The adviser and the special assistant opposing the decision, unfortunately, compelled the education ministry to hold a meeting today and cancel the August directive,’ he said on Sunday.
   ‘Early Saturday after we had visited some institutions, we were told by the high up in the government not to visit any more institutions to see if classes started at 7:30am,’ one of the vigilance team members told New Age Saturday morning. ‘The vigilance teams were formed on October 9, but we started visiting the institutions on October 18 and found except for English-medium schools, all Bangla-medium schools have followed the August instruction.’
   ‘English-medium schools are not following the instruction as they are not offering education in accordance with Bangladeshi curriculum. Now we need to attend a meeting today at the ministry on the cancellation of the order,’ ANM Shareef, director (secondary) of the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education, said Sunday morning.
   There are 41 private universities, 198 colleges, about 500 government and non-government secondary schools, and about 300 government primary schools in Dhaka. There are also a huge number of kindergartens and English-medium schools.

Former secretary of state and military supremo Colin Powell Sunday endorsed Democrat Barack Obama’s White House bid, in a stinging rebuff to Republican candidate John McCain.
   The former chairman of the joint chiefs of staff expressed deep disquiet over the rightward shift the Republican Party has taken under McCain and his running mate Sarah Palin — who he said was not ready to be president.
   The Republican, on NBC programme ‘Meet the Press,’ said Obama had ‘met the standard’ to lead ‘because of his ability to inspire, because of the inclusive nature of his campaign, because he is reaching out all across America.’
   ‘I think he would be a transformational president. For that reason I will be voting for senator Barack Obama,’ said Powell, who was the first African-American to occupy the top US military post.
   Should the mixed-race Obama win on November 4, ‘all Americans should be proud, not just African-Americans,’ he added.
   ‘It would not just electrify our country, it would electrify the world.’
   Powell said that both Obama and his old friend McCain were ready to be president.
   ‘But I strongly believe that at this point in American history we need a president... who will not just continue basically the policies we have been following in the recent years,’ he said.
   ‘I think we need a transformational figure, I think we need a generational change. That is why I’m supporting senator Obama.’
   Speaking on Fox News, McCain said he had ‘always admired and respected General Powell.’
   ‘We’re long-time friends. This doesn’t come as a surprise,’ the Arizona senator said, while touting his endorsement by other former secretaries of state including Henry Kissinger, James Baker and Lawrence Eagleburger.
   Powell again defended his role in the build-up to the Iraq invasion, insisting that he acted in good faith on the basis of intelligence evidence that, he felt, showed Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.
   He denied he was keen on returning to government in an Obama administration to help repair his political reputation.
   Powell said he would have to be ready to serve if asked, ‘but I am in no way anxious to rule it in.’
   He had harsh words about the tone of McCain’s campaign and rising Islamophobia in Republican circles as smears purport to portray Obama as a secret Muslim.
   ‘I have said to McCain that I admire all he has done. I have some concerns about the direction the party has taken in recent years. It has moved more to the right than I would like to see it,’ he said.
   McCain had gone ‘too far’ with a negative advertising barrage over Obama’s ties to former 1960s radical William Ayers, Powell said.
   He said the economic crisis engulfing the United States had made up his mind, along with McCain’s choice of Alaska Governor Palin as his vice presidential nominee.
   ‘In the case of McCain I found that he was a little unsure as to how to deal with the economic problems that we are having. Almost every day there was a different approach to the problem, and that concerned me,’ he said.
   ‘I was also concerned at the selection of governor Palin,’ he said. ‘I don’t believe she is ready to be president of the United States. And so that raised in my mind some question as to the judgment that senator McCain made.’
   Powell said that Obama, in contrast, had come out of recent weeks looking presidential.
   ‘He displayed a steadiness, an intellectual curiosity, a depth of knowledge and an approach to looking at (economic) problems like this, and picking a vice president (Joseph Biden) that I think is ready to be president on day one.’

The High Court on Sunday, denying bail to Jamaat-e-Islami’s secretary-general Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojahid in the Barapukuria coalmine corruption case, ordered him to surrender in the trial court within two weeks.
   The High Court bench of Justice Md Anwarul Haque and Justice Farah Mahbub passed the order after hearing a bail petition filed by Mojahid.
   ‘The petitioner is directed to surrender in the trial court by two weeks, considering the previous High Court orders in the case,’ said the court in its order.
   On October 6 the court of the Dhaka metropolitan senior special judge issued a warrant for arrest against Mojahid, who was shown absconding in the charge-sheet of the case. The court on October 16 decided Mojahid’s trial in his absence as he had neither surrendered in court nor was arrested.
   Mojahid’s lawyer Abdur Razzaq told the High Court on Sunday that he, along with his client, had earlier roamed from one court to another to get bail in the case, but neither the High Court Division nor the Appellate Division accepted Mojahid’s prayer for bail.
   ‘We did not go to the trial court to seek bail as it has no power to entertain the prayer for bail in the case that had been filed under the Prevention of Corruption Act,’ Razzaq argued.
   The High Court then asked Razzaq, ‘How will we accept Mojahid’s bail prayer? How will we accept the petition of a person who did not show the least respect for the court’s proceedings?’
   Razzaq later referred to the case in which the High Court had granted bail to Jahanara Imam, also known as ‘Shahid Janani’, after a warrant for arrest against her had been issued by the trial court. She was accused of sedition for sentencing Jamaat’s amir, Matiur Rahman Nizami, in a mock public court in the ‘90s.
   He also argued that the five accused in the Barapukuria case, including the principal accused — former premier Khaleda Zia — were granted bail by the High Court Division. Saifur Rahman, however, was directed on October 8 to surrender in the trial court within four weeks.
   The proceedings of the case against Khaleda were also stayed by the High Court on October 16, Razzaq informed the court, adding that the law should be applied equally to all the people.
   Khurshid Alam Khan, appearing for the Anti-Corruption Commission that lodged the case, opposed Mojahid’s prayer for bail. ‘The High Court cannot grant the prayer for bail under any circumstances as the petitioner has already been declared to be a fugitive.’
   He also argued that the proceedings of the case have been stayed, but the warrant of arrest is still in force.
   Khurshid said that the High Court on June 3 rejected Mojahid’s petition for anticipatory bail in the case when it was under investigation. Mojahid’s counsels later went to the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court.
   Mojahid appeared before the Appellate Division’s chamber judge, M Joynul Abedin, on October 8, seeking bail in the case, but the court refused to entertain the bail petition as the warrant for his arrest had been issued, Khurshid added.
   A large contingent of law-enforcers was deployed in the High Court’s premises in expectation of Mojahid’s appearance in court.
   After the court’s order, Mojahid’s cadres gathered in the court’s premises, shouting inflammatory slogans right before the police in violation of the state of emergency.

The secretary committee on administrative development affairs at a meeting on Sunday discussed a Cabinet Division proposal for the verification of the wealth statements of government officials by the ministries and divisions in aid of the Anti-Corruption Commission to identify corrupt officials in bureaucracy.
   With the cabinet secretary, Ali Imam Majumder, in the chair, the meeting of the committee discussed various ways to properly examine the wealth statements of a huge number of public servants to rid bureaucracy of corruption, but no concrete decision was made in this regard, according to the meeting sources.
   The proposal was made at the request of the commission, which found it an uphill task to detect who among the 12 lakh people on the government payroll were concealing information of assets or amassing illegal wealth.
   Secretaries to the finance division, and the ministries of industries, home affairs, commerce, establishment, education and law and Planning Commission members also attended the meeting.
   The meeting, however, approved the home ministry proposal for creating 74 openings in four upazila fire stations at Dayarampur in Natore, Chouwarbazar in Comilla, Harinakunda in Jhenaidah and Pekua in Cox’s Bazar under a project to construct fire service and civil defence stations in 78 important upazilas, the sources said.
   The Cabinet Division placed a number of alternative proposals to the committee members in the past week for analysis before they sit and work out a strategy to fight corruption in the administration, the sources said.
   ‘We discussed ways on how to deal with the wealth statements,’ said a senior official.
   Around 12 lakh government employees and officials, from Class IV to Class I, submitted their wealth statements in February at an establishment ministry order issued after the commission had asked for such statements.
   The high-powered committees, as proposed by the division, will compare the statements with the income tax returns of the government employees and detect whether anyone has concealed any information on asset.
   They will select the statements randomly and the ministry concerned will take disciplinary action against the members on the staff found hiding information on assets or amassing illegal wealth, the proposal said.
   The commission in a letter earlier urged the Cabinet Division and the establishment ministry to take some steps to fight corruption in bureaucracy.
   The commission said it alone could not eliminate the all-pervasive problem unless every government department took some punitive measures on its end.
   The commission, meanwhile on Sunday, held the first of a series of dialogues with top government officials at the land ministry seeking their help in identifying ways to check checking corruption in public offices.
   ‘We want to break down the system which breeds corruption,’ the commission’s chairman Hasan Mashhud Chowdhury told reporters after his first meeting with senior government officials at the secretariat.

The government is expected to announce cuts in the prices of fuel oils by 5 to 9 per cent anytime this week.
   It has sent a proposal for fuel price reduction to the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission for approval, sources in the energy division said.
   The price of diesel and kerosene is likely to come down to around Tk 50 per litre from the current price of Tk 55 and the price of octane to Tk 82-84 from Tk 90 and that of petrol to around Tk 80 from Tk 87 per litre, they said.
   When contacted, energy secretary Mohammad Mohsin, told New Age on Sunday that they had sent the proposal to the BERC to cut the prices of fuel oils.
   The chairman of BERC, Ghulam Rahman, said that they had received the price reduction proposal on Thursday and would make a decision in a day or two after holding a meeting with all members of the commission.
   M Tamim, special assistant to the chief adviser, also told New Age that the government might announce price cuts this week.
   The officials would not, however, say what would be the exact prices as it had not yet been finalised.
   ‘The extent of price reduction will be roughly around 10 per cent for all fuel oils. In terms of percentage, the cut in octane and petrol prices will be less as these are used by the affluent sections of the society’, said Tamim.
   ‘We have given different scenarios of prices. A final decision will be made later’, said Mohsin.
   ‘The price of diesel and kerosene is most likely to be reduced by around 9-10 per cent to Tk 50 per litre and octane and petrol by around 8 per cent to Tk 80-84 per litre’, a highly placed source in the division told New Age.
   Energy officials said that they had already held discussions with communication ministry officials on possible reduction in transport fares after the new oil prices come into effect.
   ‘We have already held a meeting with the communication ministry and discussed the issue of transport fare reduction. I think the ministry is taking preparations for transport fare cuts when the oil prices are reduced’, Mohsin said.
   The government has taken the steps to reduce oil prices on the local market against the backdrop of plummeting prices of oil on the international market which saw prices drop sharply by around 50 per cent – from $141 to $70 – in recent times. The government raised fuel oil prices on the local market by 33-37 per cent when the prices hit record highs on the international market in July this year.
   When Tamim was asked why they were going for just around 10 per cent cuts in oil prices after hiking the prices by 33-37 per cent last time, Tamim said, ‘Despite the fall [in oil prices] BPC is still giving some subsidies in diesel and kerosene. After we reduce the prices, we will continue to monitor fuel oil prices on international market. If the current trend continues, we will again review the prices for downward adjustments.’
   Mohsin said that when the fuel prices were increased in July, they projected that the BPC’s losses would come down to Tk 10,000 crore from Tk 17,000 crore.
   ‘After fuel price is decreased on local market, the government will need to give BPC Tk 4,000 crore in subsidy for the current fiscal year. So, at present we cannot afford to reduce prices by more than 10 per cent as it will create budgetary pressure’, he said.

Three children of a family died Sunday after taking toxic deworming medicine at Gokornoghat village in Brahmanbaria Sadar upazila.
   The deceased were Sharmin, 8, Sharif, 6 and 10-month-old Sonia.
   Victims’ mother Halima Begum said she bought a bottle of Ayurvedic deworming medicine from Nikli upazila of Kishoreganj district eight months ago.
   She gave the medicine to her three children on Saturday night who were found dead Sunday morning.
   Civil Surgeon Dr Nurul Amin has sent a three-member medical team to the village to investigate the incident.
   It is suspected that the children died after taking the poisonous Ayurvedic medicine.
   The bodies were sent to Sadar hospital morgue for autopsy and police seized the bottle of the medicine.
   Two other children of the family survived as they did not take the medicine at night.
   Police Super Lutfor Rahman Mondol visited the spot.

United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon is scheduled to arrive in the capital on November 1 on a two-day visit to Bangladesh as part of his tour of four nations in Asia.
   He will fly in here from the Nepalese capital of Kathmandu.
   Foreign ministry officials told New Age on Sunday that the top UN official would assess Bangladesh’s position regarding some global issues, including climate change. He will also make an assessment of the operation of micro-finance and disaster management projects in Bangladesh.
   According to the tentative schedule, BanKi-moon, former foreign and trade minister of South Korea, will call on president Iajuddin Ahmed, chief adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed, foreign affairs adviser Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury and chief of army staff General Moeen U Ahmed.
   An official of the ministry said that Ban Ki-moon’s four-country tour would begin with the Philippines on October 28.
   ‘Then he moves to New Delhi on October 30 and Kathmandu on October 31’, the official added. When the official was asked whether the planned visit of the UN secretary general was in any way related to the general elections in Bangladesh slated for December 18, the official replied in the negative.
   ‘The UN secretary general’s visit here is long overdue…His predecessor Kofi Annan visited Dhaka back in 2001’, the foreign ministry official said.
   Diplomatic sources told New Age that Ban Ki-moon would not hold any separate meetings with the political parties.
   ‘He, however, has a chance to meet politicians at a dinner to be hosted by the government’, said the source.
   During his stay here, the UN secretary general is likely to visit Manikganj and Sirajgang to see a number of micro-credit and disaster management projects.
   He will also be briefed at the army headquarters on Bangladesh’s role in the United Nations peacekeeping missions.
   Ban Ki-moon is scheduled to leave Dhaka on November 2.

The energy division will hold an inter-ministerial meeting tomorrow to incorporate the observations of the council of advisers into the coal policy for its placement before the council by November.
   Although many energy officials are sceptical about whether the interim government will make a decision on the sensitive policy before the general elections scheduled for December 18, they said the division would place the policy draft before the council for the last time seeking approval.
   The energy secretary, Mohammad Mohsin, will chair the inter-ministerial meeting, scheduled to be attended by the officials of law, environment, land, agriculture and education ministry, said officials.
   The council of advisers, headed by the chief adviser, Fakhruddin Ahmed, at a meeting on August 13 in Chittagong sent back the draft policy for further scrutiny as a number of advisers differed on some provisions in the draft and gave some observations.
   ‘We will accommodate the observations of the council in draft at the inter-ministerial meeting. We hope to place the policy draft before the council by November,’ Mohsin told New Age earlier.
   When asked whether they were hopeful of getting the council approval, the chief adviser’s special assistant M Tamim on Sunday told New Age, ‘The council has made some observations and asked for its placement again. It is up to the council of advisers to make the decision. We are hopeful.’
   One on the council of advisers at the Chittagong meeting wanted a clear-cut decision on the royalty on coal extraction as the draft had a provision that a proposed coal sector development committee would set the royalty rate.
   Setting the royalty rate has remained a contentious issue in the coal policy as the energy division dropped a set of guidelines included by the advisory committee of former BUET vice-chancellor Abdul Matin Patwari to set the royalty rate.
   The adviser at the Chittagong meeting observed a minimum royalty rate should be there in the policy along with the guidelines on changing the rate from time to time.
   The division observed the 28-member coal sector development committee that would include all stakeholders including energy experts, businesspeople, parliament members and bureaucrats, should fix the royalty rate.
   The council also observed there should be a more clear explanation on the steps that would be taken to rehabilitate the people affected by coal mining and on the use of mined land.
   They also wanted a clear analysis of environmental management, especially of the water table.
   The council also asked the division to include more explanation on the licensing process of the coal mine and foreign investment in exploring and developing coal fields.
   Left-leaning political parties and organisations including the National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, Power and Port are demanding that the government should not approve the coal policy observing that an elected political government should formulate such a policy.

The High Court on Sunday extended its stay order on the proceedings of the Tk 2.99 crore extortion case against Awami League president Sheikh Hasina till disposal of the rule issued earlier.
   The High Court bench of Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain and Justice Quamrul Islam Siddiqui passed the order after hearing a petition filed by Hasina, also former prime minister, seeking extension of the stay order issued by another High Court bench on September 16.
   The High Court bench of Justice Mirza Hussain Haider and Justice Mamnoon Rahman stayed till October 19 the proceeding of the extortion case that is pending with the Special Judge’s Court. It also granted bail to Hasina, who is now in Canada for treatment after being released by an executive order on June 11.
   Earlier, the High Court bench of Justice Khademul Islam Chowdhury and Justice Mashuque Hosain Ahmed issued a rule on the government to explain why the extortion case against Hasina would not be declared illegal.
   Meanwhile, another High Court bench of Justice Sheikh Rezwan Ali and Justice Md Rais Uddin on Sunday adjourned till October 29 the hearing of the petitions filed by Hasina for quashing the barge-mounted power plant corruption case.
   The court passed the order and the fixed the date for further hearing in response to a prayer moved by the counsels of Hasina and the Anti-Corruption Commission.
   The High Court on July 7 stayed for two months all the proceedings of both the corruption cases.
   On August 27 the HC extended the stay order of the graft cases filed by the ACC, and the government filed the petitions against that extension order. It also asked the government to dispose of the appeals within two months after the date of the stay order.

The Anti-Corruption Commission has held the first of a series of dialogues with top government officials to seek their help to identify the ways and means of checking corruption in public offices.
   ‘We want to shatter the system that breeds corruption,’ Hasan Mashhud Chowdhury, chairman of the ACC, told reporters after his maiden meeting with senior officials at the land ministry on Sunday.
   ‘Many important suggestions were made to tackle corruption in the public offices and we will base our course of action on those suggestions,’ added the ACC’s chief after the meeting in the land ministry’s conference room.
   The anti-graft body earlier wrote to the government to seek its approval to hold a series of meetings with top officials of the ministries as part of its campaign against corruption.
   Initially it selected four ministries — land, local government, rural development and cooperatives, health and family welfare, and communications — to hold talks with their officials.
   Participants of the maiden meeting observed that the erroneous land management under the outdated legal system have made the land ministry offices throughout the country hotbeds of corruption. The ACC will sit again with the land ministry’s officials after 15 days at the ACC’s office.
   The meeting suggested reforms of the laws on land and land management, digitalisation of record keeping to replace the existing manual system, enhancement of the salaries of the officials and employees and change in the mindset of the officials, along with quite a few other suggestions.
   Mashhud said that he has been trying to make people take part in the campaign against corruption. ‘I wanted the officials’ assistance, and they duly extended their cooperation,’ he said, adding that a number of issues were discussed at the meeting.
   The ACC will decide its course of action once the suggestions are scrutinised and accepted, he said, and vowed to work together to eliminate corruption from the society.
   When he was asked whether the meeting focused on punishment of the corrupt officials and employees in the land ministry, Hasan Mashhud said that punishment was not the only way to eliminate corruption. Eradication of corruption needs a ‘social movement’.
   ‘We are not looking for individuals right now; we are
   pursuing something bigger, which is to change the system,’ added the ACC’s chief. He emphasised the need for law reforms and digitalisation of record keeping for proper land management.
   The aim of the dialogues is to remove institutional corruption, not petty graft, he told reporters.
   ‘We first want to identify the reasons for, and methods of, corruption,’ he said, adding that the ACC is discussing a certain plan to curb corruption which will be implemented in the long run.
   The land ministry’s secretary, Abu Mohammad Moniruzzaman, assured Mashhud that his office would extend every support possible in the campaign against corruption.
   The meeting was attended by ACC’s officials, Abul Hasan Manzur Mannan, the chairman of the Land Reforms Commission, and Manirul Islam, along with others.
   They shared their experiences and exchanged information on corruption in the land ministry. The meeting was told that 1.4 million cases on land disputes are pending in the country’s courts right now.

All-rounder Sakib al Hasan followed his record bowling feat with the maiden Test half-century to take Bangladesh to a potential match-winning position after three days of the first cricket Test against New Zealand in Chittagong on Sunday.
   Sakib used the first session to return with Bangladesh’s best ever bowling figures in an innings, 7 for 36, surpassing Enamul Haque Jr’s 7-95 against Zimbabwe and by stumps he provided the platform for an overall lead of 258 with a career best 71.
   Mashrafee bin Murtaza (not out 5) was batting with Abdur Razzak at close with Bangladesh on 184-8 in the second innings. They had already a 74-run lead after wrapping New Zealand up for 171 runs in the first innings.
   New Zealand need to do a record fourth innings run chase on foreign soil to avoid the loss after they failed to fully capitalise on the scope after reducing Bangladesh to 49 for four at lunch.
   Ominously for New Zealand they have never overhauled a fourth-innings total in excess of 200 in 41 attempts – their best score was 164 for four to beat Australia at the WACA in Perth in 1985.
   History however suggests it will not be an easy task for Bangladesh as Tigers have the record of squandering two healthier lead against Australia and Pakistan respectively.
   Australia won by three wickets chasing a target 307 runs at the Fatullah stadium in 2006 while Pakistan left the Tigers in tears in 2003 at Multan scoring 263 runs thanks to an epic century from Inzamam-ul-Haq.
   Most recently South Africa snatched the victory from Bangladesh’s grip when they scored 205-5 in an unfavourable batting condition at the Mirpur stadium earlier this year. Bangladesh’s batting in the second innings was responsible for all three defeats and things looked no better in this game.
   The top-order batsmen that included a sorry skipper Mohammad Ashraful did their best to throw the advantage away playing one after another bad shot to lose five wickets for 71 runs.
   Junaed Siddique (6) was unlucky to get a gem of a delivery from Kyle Mills, but Tamim Iqbal (33), Mohammad Ashraful (0) and Mehrab Hossian Jr (6) all were guilty of playing ill-timed shots.
   Rajin Saleh was trapped lbw for 6 by Jeetan Patel. But two good partnerships for the sixth and seventh wickets stemmed the rot. Mushfiqur Rahim was the symbol of patience when he scored 32 off 121 balls before dragging one off Ian O’Brien on to his stump to be played on.
   Sakib, who was promoted in the batting order, took the centre stage after he lost Mushfique, his partner in a 56-run sixth-wicket stand, sweeping Jeetan Patel for fours in there consecutive deliveries in the 19th over of the bowler.
   Danel Vettori, unbeaten on 55 with the bat in the first innings, did not dare to use Patel further and took the onus on his own shoulder to stave off Bangladesh’s progression. He ended a 48-run partnership between Sakib and Naeem Islam when the first lofted a catch at slip to a juggling Ross Taylor.
   It brought an end of a fine innings that included 12 fours. The dismissal also ruined Sakib’s chance to join the elite club of centurions and a five-wicket takets in the same match. Test cricket has seen only 26 such instances from 21 cricketers with Jacques Kallis doing it last against Bangladesh at Potchefstroom in 2002.
   Vettori underlined his class beating a doughty Naeem (19) in the penultimate over of the day to return with 4-39, but it was perhaps too late as Bangladesh had already gone close to a lead they desired.

The council of advisers on Sunday approved the Local Government (Municipality) (Amendment) Ordinance 2008 and Local Government (City Corporation) (Amendment) Ordinance 2008.
   The chief adviser’s press secretary, Syed Fahim Munaim, told the reporters after the meeting.
   The chief adviser, Fakhruddin Ahmed, presided over the meeting.
   Some changes and additions were made in the amended two local government ordinances, including minimum six months and maximum seven years imprisonment for committing electoral offences while six months jail or Tk 50,000 fine or both for violating any provision of electoral code of conduct.
   As per amended ordinances, the Appellate Election Tribunal will have to disposes of any election-related case within 30 days of appeal instead of earlier 120 days.
   ‘Verdict of the Appellate Election Tribunal will be considered final,’ it is stated in the objective of the amended laws.
   The meeting also approved a proposal for forming Bakhrabad Gas Distribution Company Ltd and Karnaphuli Gas Distribution Company Ltd by rearranging Bakhrabad Gas System Ltd for balanced distribution of gas and flourishing industries.
   The command area of Bakhrabad Gas Distribution Company Ltd comprises Comilla, Chandpur, Brahmanbaria and greater Noakhali district while that of Karnaphuli Gas Distribution Company Ltd comprises Chittagong district and Chittagong Hill Tracts.
   The meeting also discussed the draft of Bangladesh National Olympic Committee NOC-Ban Ordinance 2008 and asked for further extensive examination before placing it again.
   The meeting was apprised of Hajj flights as the operation of Hajj flight will begin on October 31. The meeting asked religious ministry and Biman Bangladesh Airlines to further examine all matters of Hajj flights, including carrying pilgrims from Chittagong and Sylhet.

Pakistani forces killed about 40 Taliban militants on Sunday, security officials said, as the top US diplomat for South Asia visited the volatile country for talks.
   The US assistant secretary of state, Richard Boucher, met Pakistani officials after a series of US missile strikes into Pakistan’s tribal regions that have strained bilateral relations.
   Ties between the ‘war on terror’ allies have also been tested by US special forces in Afghanistan launching a raid into Pakistan last month that killed several Pakistanis.
   Boucher’s visit was for ‘routine talks planned in advance,’ the US embassy said without giving further details.
   He met interior ministry chief Rehman Malik on Saturday for ‘cordial and friendly’ discussions, according to Pakistani officials, and was scheduled to hold talks with the prime minister, Yousuf Raza Gilani, on Monday.
   It was unclear whether he would meet with the president, Asif Ali Zardari.
   Pakistan is facing major economic problems as well as rising attacks by al-Qaeda-linked Taliban militants, and has been seeking support from allies to stabilise the country.
   The US says insurgents striking international troops in Afghanistan are based in Pakistan’s border tribal belt, and has stepped up its missile attacks since a new civilian government came to power in Islamabad in March.
   Zardari has vowed zero tolerance against violations of his country’s sovereignty amid the attacks, which have stoked anti-US sentiment in Pakistan.
   In the latest clashes of Pakistan’s own military operations against Islamic militants, jets bombed a hideout in the northwestern Swat valley, killing two rebel commanders and about 25 other men, officials said.
   The two rebel leaders killed in the air strike were closely associated with pro-Taliban cleric Maulana Fazlullah, a security official said, adding an ammunition dump at the hideout had exploded.
   The official said that intelligence had indicated a large militant gathering in the area, a stronghold of extremists loyal to Fazlullah, who has declared a jihad or holy war against the government.
   Also in Swat on Sunday three militants and a soldier were killed in a Taliban attack on a security forces convoy, a separate security official said.
   The mountainous Swat valley was until last year a popular tourist destination where many Pakistani city dwellers went for their annual holidays.
   In the tribal district of Bajaur, which borders Afghanistan, a combined land and air assault killed at least 10 al-Qaeda linked Taliban militants.
   The casualties occurred in fighting which began late Saturday after militants fired at troop positions, a security official said.
   The United Nations refugee agency recently said almost 190,000 people had been displaced from the Bajaur region in recent fighting.
   Pakistan’s military said in late September that the fighting had killed at least 1,000 militants since early August.

Bangladesh Social Forum, a forum of NGOs, has declared that it would resist the IMF, World Bank, the ADB and other lending agencies from interfering in the country’s economic policy.
   ‘Country’s sovereignty has now become jeopardised due to naked interference of the three devils into our policies,’ said a statement of ActionAid Bangladesh issued Sunday of behalf of the forum.
   The forum was formed, among others, by ActionAid Bangladesh, Angikar Bangladesh, Shushashoner Jonno Pracharavijan, INCIDEN and some other humanitarian agencies.
   They expressed their determination at the concluding session of a programme titled ‘Bangladesh Week’ in the city on Saturday. Angikar Bangladesh president M Helaluddin recited a mock farewell-letter for the IMF, WB and the ADB on behalf of the forum at the session.
   A series of programmes were held across the country as part of the week-long campaign that kicked off on October 12 protesting against the motive of the multilateral giants.
   At the concluding session, the forum leaders alleged that the amount of loan for Bangladesh and other recipient countries was increasing every year due to hard conditions imposed by the IMF, WB and the ADB.
   ‘At present the country has to pay annually Tk 11,000 per head to repay loans to lending agencies, amounting to a loss of Tk 14,000 crore per year,’ said the statement, adding that the amount is double than the country’s health budget and 20 per cent of the total budget for the current fiscal.
   They said the world was now facing the adverse effect of climate change caused by the indiscreet consuming mentality of the rich countries while Bangladesh is one of the worst vulnerable countries to natural disasters due to climate change.
   ‘Instead of acknowledging their responsibilities for the catastrophic situation, the rich countries through the IMF, WB and the ADB are now trying to implement their various projects in Bangladesh and other affected countries in the name of adaptation which will eventually increase poverty of the poor countries,’ said the forum.
   It said the people of the country never nodded to any kind of dictatorship in the past and urged people to get united against the evil motive of the multilateral financial institutions.
   The forum leaders called upon the government to refrain from further signing such kind of agreements and placed a seven-point charter of demands to the lending agencies and the government.
   Major demands include immediate waiver of debts, stopping imposition of the hard conditions, refraining from taking any project harmful to the environment, shifting the Multi-Donor Trust Fund management to the government control, considering the climate change fund out of the foreign development aid and allocating funds to offset loss caused by climate change.
   Other demands include providing compensation to those who have been affected by climate change caused by implementation of some of the development projects of the IMF, WB and the ADB, and stopping massive privatisation drive in the name of eradicating poverty and simultaneously providing adequate subsidy and increasing government allocation in the government service sectors.

The Bangladesh Telecommuni-cation Regulatory Commission on Sunday handed over WiMAX licence to the Augere Wireless Broadband Bangladesh Ltd for the operation and maintenance of broadband wireless access services.
   The Augere Wireless Broadband Bangladesh Ltd is the first to get such a licence.
   In an open auction on September 24, the BanglaLion Communications, BRAC BDmail Network Ltd and the Augere Wireless Broadband Bangladesh Ltd won the bid for the licences in exchange for Tk 215 crore each.
   The companies will provide wireless broadband internet service using WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) technology which allows wireless data to travel over long distances by various means, from point-to-point links to full mobile cellular type access.
   The telecoms regulatory commission chairman, Manzurul Alam, handed over the licence to NH Chowdhury and Syed Farhad Ahmed of the Augere Wireless Broadband Bangladesh in the commission office in Dhaka.
   The commission’s vice-chairman Hasan Mahmood Delwar, commissioner SM Monir Ahmed and other senior officials were present on the occasion.

The Kalyan Party chairman, Syed Mohammad Ibrahim, has called for lifting the state emergency to create congenial atmosphere for the December 18 parliamentary polls.
   ‘Although only two months left before elections, there is still no election environment in the country due to the state of emergency,’ he said.
   Exchanging views with his party leaders at the party’s New DOHS secretariat, Ibrahim said the emergency prevents political parties from conducting openly their activities and reaching out to the people.
   Demanding immediate withdrawal of the emergency, he said people this time around have become quite conscious and would boycott the corrupt and terrorists in the coming elections.
   Ibrahim said his party stands for politics for change and observed that honest, educated and meritorious people are eager to salvage the nation from the politics of criminalisation.
   ‘If good people cannot go to electorates, muscle power will prevail,’ he apprehended.

A flight of the China Eastern Airlines had to make a delayed departure from Dhaka for Kunming as the aircraft’s indicator gave explosive signal twice before the takeoff.
   Officials at Zia International Airport said the pilot of the flight No MU 2036 got the first signal just before the scheduled takeoff at about 2:43pm and informed the control tower.
   ‘Soon all the passengers were offloaded for security check,’ said one source.
   The airport security personnel rushed in and conducted extensive search inside the aircraft and luggage but didn’t find any bomb or explosive. The passengers were boarded again.
   But the pilot again received explosive signal from the aircraft indicator. And once again the passengers were offloaded and taken to a safer place.
   In the midst of the bomb scare, the airport authority called in explosive experts to check the aircraft but could not trace any explosive materials.
   As both the pilot and experts were convinced that the indicator gave the wrong signals, the aircraft left the airport at about 4:15pm, over an hour behind the schedule.
   The director of the ZIA, Wing Commander Saidul Islam, confirmed the incident of bomb hoax. ‘The aircraft indicator gave the wrong signal,’ he said.

Two groups of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party were locked in a scuffle when the divisional committee members were exchanging views with the district (north) unit leaders at a community centre in Chittagong city on Saturday.
   Party sources said the incident had taken place when the Hathazari unit general secretary, Nur Mohammed began to explain the contribution of former whip, Sayad Wahidul Alam, to the party.
   The party men, loyal to SM Fazlul Hoque, a party nomination aspirant from Hathazari constituency, protested against his speech, terming Wahid a reformist and criticizing him for leaving the country after the proclamation of the state of emergency.
   As the men came to blows, the senior leaders forced the scuffling people out of the meeting with the help of the police, sources said.
   Rabeya Chowdhury, vice chairman of the BNP central committee, was chief guest at the meeting at the Marriage Garden Community Centre. The meeting was attended, among others, by former minister Abdullah Al Noman, district (north) unit president, Golam Akbar Khondoker, former whip Sayad Wahidul Alam, former lawmaker Jainal Abedin Fareque, and former president of the Bangladesh garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association SM Fazlul Hoque.

A Dhaka court Sunday issued arrest warrant against former commerce adviser and Jatiyatabadi Juba Dal president Barkatullah Bulu for tax evasion to the tune of Tk 98.29 lakh.
   The Senior Special Judge Court issued the order following a case filed by Assistant Commissioner (Tax) Mortuza Shariful Islam, in the wake of clean-up drives launched by the interim regime.
   October 22 has been fixed as the next date for the case.
   In his complaint, Islam said Barkatullah Bulu ‘evaded the payment of income tax’ about Tk 98.29 lakh through concealing about Tk 71 lakh from his real income during the 2000-2006 fiscal year.