The prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, has said the government has amended the constitution to ensure equal rights of all citizens as well as seal off the usurpation of power in the future.
'We want to ensure rights of all citizens irrespective of their religion and race,' she remarked during a meeting with the leaders of Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad and Janmasthami Udjapan Parishad at her official Ganabhaban residence Saturday.
Hasina said the present government wanted to create an atmosphere where every citizen would feel that they were enjoying equal rights like others. 'That's why we've brought about the 15th amendment to the constitution,' she said.
Referring to the critics of the amendment, the prime minister said some vested quarters had emerged all on a sudden and were threatening to throw away the constitution. 'I don't know what their problem with the constitution is,' she said.
Hasina said the amendment was done to ensure that no one could grab the state power, everyone should get their rights and people could cast their votes in favour of the party of their choice.
She also said the amended constitution envisages provisions to punish those who would grab the power illegally in the future.
'We want to ensure that no one can play game with the fate of the people,' she said.
About the caretaker government, Hasina said it was true that she had launched movement for establishment of the caretaker system. 'But there were some loopholes in this system as the BNP government passed this system by an illegal parliament,' she said.
Hasina said the people had unique experience about the caretaker system since 1990.
Recalling the 'dark days' of 2001, the prime minister said not only Hindu, Buddhist or Christians faced oppression; the people who worked for the Awami League faced the heinous oppression by the BNP-Jamaat government. 'Even Muslims were not safe from their tortures,' she recalled.
Hasina said the Awami League was the only party in the country that believes in communal harmony.
She said Bangladesh people were very cordial by nature and had respect for other religions. 'That's why the people of one religion participate in the religious festivals of the other religions,' she said.
The prime minister said the government would not allow any kind of extremism and militancy in Bangladesh that destroy communal harmony.
She said the government was working hard to give a boost to the rural economy apart from ensuring the basic needs of the people.
Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad chief adviser CR Dutta, professor Durga Das Bhattachariya, Puja Udjapan Parishad president Subrata Chowdhury, general secretary Mongol Ghosh, Janmasthami Udjapan Parishad, Chittagong chapter general secretary Tapan Kanti Das and Mahanagar Sarbojanin Puja Udjapan Parishad general secretary Babul Debnath also spoke on the occasion.
Source : New Age
No comments:
Post a Comment