Khaleda Zia, the two times Prime
Minister of Bangladesh, has been released from her 17-day long house arrest.
The authorities have released her midst renewed violence over last year's
disputed elections -which saw Sheikh Hasina emerge victorious- that rendered 28
dead and several injured.
The barricading around the office
of Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) in the upmarket Gulshan district
was removed around 3 in the night. “They (police) first removed their vans at
around 2.30 am and afterwards they left the scene along with water cannons,” a
BNP official told the media.
Some are seeing the withdrawal of
security in the light of 79th birth anniversary of Zia's husband and the
founder of the BNP Ziaur Rahman. Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, state minister for
home affairs said last night that Ms Zia would not be stopped from visiting the
grave of Mr Rahman, and she is free to go anywhere after offering her obeisance
there.
Khaleda Zia, 69, was house arrested
on 3 January, ahead of the BNP-led 20 party alliance’s much talked-about rally
that was to mark the completion of one year of the disputed general elections
that were held on January 5.
As expected, her house arrest
gave rise to renewed political upheaval that took 28 lives. While she was under
house arrest, her political allies and sympathizers called for a nationwide
transport blockade. The protesters from BNP and other political outfits
firebombed vehicles and the police was forced to take action against them in
form of bullets and tear gas.
Ms Zia is adamantly asking the
government to call for fresh elections. As last year's controversial elections
were boycotted by opposition parties.
Khaleda Zia has served two terms
- 1991 to 1996 and 2001 to 2006- as the PM of Bangladesh.
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