DHAKA, 22 November 2006 — Bangladesh interim government officials hoped for a breakthrough yesterday in a political crisis over a key election official, as a transport blockade paralyzed the country and three people died in clashes.
The caretaker government said it was confident of resolving the standoff over opposition demands that it sack chief election commissioner M.A. Aziz, accused of trying to rig national polls in January.
“We finally see light at the end of the tunnel. We hope we will get a result within the next 24 to 48 hours,” Mahbubul Alam, a member of the interim Cabinet, told reporters.
Election Commissioner Justice Mahfuzur Rahman told newsmen separately Chief Election Commissioner M.A. Aziz’s will decide on his resignation today.
Aziz had a series of meetings with EC officials but the officials declined to give any details about the meetings.
Japanese Ambassador to Dhaka H.I. Inoe and Australian Ambassador Douglas Foskett had meetings with elections officials during which they discussed election preparations and deployment of international observers.
Media reports also predicted a compromise over the election chief would be reached soon. “Aziz, with all probability, may either go on leave until the elections are over or resign in a couple of days,” said the English-language newspaper, the Daily Star, in a front-page report.
The report said Aziz hinted to a delegation of interim Cabinet members who visited him Monday he was likely to go on extended leave to perform Haj in Saudi Arabia next month.
The reports came as the country again ground to a halt, on the second day of the opposition’s transport blockade. “Thousands of opposition supporters held rallies and demonstrations for the second day, but apart from some clashes on Dhaka University campus, we have no reports of any violence,” said deputy commissioner of Dhaka police Aurangjeb Mahbub.
Police said at least three people were killed, all supporters of outgoing Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), in renewed political violence in the country.
Two BNP activists were run over by a bus carrying supporters of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which also supports the blockade, in the southeastern port city of Chittagong after it was attacked by BNP supporters, assistant police superintendent Mohammad Iliyas said.
“They died on way to the hospital while at least 20 people were injured in the clashes,” he added.
In southern Lakshmipur town, a BNP supporter was beaten to death by main opposition Awami League supporters, said local police chief. Police in the northern town of Bogra said they fired rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse warring activists of BNP and Awami League. Around 15 people were injured.
