Terming the ruling Awami League a party of "killers and hijackers", Bangladesh's former Prime Minister and opposition leader Khaleda Zia today demanded early polls citing deteriorating law-and-order situation.
Bangladesh Nationalist Party chief Zia claimed the law-and-order situation in Bangladesh has "immensely deteriorated" under the ruling Awami League.
"This Awami League has been killing and making people disappear. It is a party of killers and hijackers," bdnews24.Com quoted Zia as saying.
She mentioned several killings that took place during the Awami League regime and held its leaders responsible while addressing a crowd of supporters in Jamalpur today.
Zia also reiterated her demand for abolition of Rapid Action Battalion, the elite unit formed to combat terrorism, saying their guns were now being used for political gains. She demanded an early polls under a "neutral body".
The Awami League led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina returned to power in January polls boycotted by Zia's party.
Zia was the Prime Minister of Bangladesh from 1991 to 1996 and again from 2001 to 2006. When she took office in 1991, she was the first woman in the country's history to head a democratic government. She was also the First Lady during the presidency of her late husband Ziaur Rahman.
