An overview of one of the main streets during a strike at Paltan in Dhaka yesterday. Jamaat-e-Islami, one of the Islamic parties, has called for the strike to press for the release of its leader Delwar Hossain Sayedee, after he was convicted as a war criminal.

IANS/Dhaka

Former prime minister Khaleda Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-led opposition alliance has called for a countrywide dawn-to-dusk strike for today to protest the latest constitutional amendment empowering parliamentarians to impeach apex court judges.

The BNP and its 19 allies have strongly criticised the Bangladesh Awami League government’s move to re-empower parliament to impeach the Supreme Court judges, describing it as a conspiracy, Xinhua reported.

BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Saturday evening announced the strike programme in a press briefing.

The Bangladesh parliament last Wednesday unanimously passed the constitutional amendment to regain its power to impeach apex court judges.

The bill was passed by both voice and division votes when both Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and opposition leader Raushon Ershad were present.

Parliament members will be able to impeach any judge for his or her misconduct or incapacity once the bill comes into effect.

The Bangladeshi cabinet last month gave its nod to the proposal to amend the country’s constitution to empower parliament members to impeach apex court judges.

Accusing the BNP of making ill efforts for re-establishing militancy and terrorism in the society and impeding democracy, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said no one would be spared for inciting violence in the name of a democratic movement.

“Whoever he or she might be or which party he or she heads will be taken to task,” the PM warned hinting at Zia.

“The BNP and its partners have been killing innocent people before and after the January 5 elections. They also committed numerous
misdeeds,” she said.

Hasina, also the Awami League (AL) chief, said there was tyranny of terrorism and militancy during the five-year misrule of BNP. “Now they are making ill efforts to re-establish militancy and terrorism in the society and obstruct the path of democracy again,” she said.

She was delivering an introductory speech at a joint meeting of the AL advisory council and the AL central working committee at her official residence in Dhaka on Saturday night.

“We had to face various blows and counterblows and conspiracies (in the past) and I am expressing my firm determination to take forward the country further by encountering all
hurdles,” she said.

“BNP-Jamaat terrorists had created a terrible situation at that time by uprooting railway fish-plates, torching trains, buses and other vehicles as well as cutting trees and roads in the name of their so-called movement,” she said.