Muhith slams BNP in budget speech for polls boycott

 Finance Minister AMA Muhith in his budget speech on Thursday came down hard on BNP for what he said the party’s abortive move for disrupting democratic process in Bangladesh by boycotting the January 5 election.

“I’ve to say with deep regret that a large political party, by boycotting the election, vainly tried to disrupt our democratic process,” he told Parliament in his introductory budget speech without naming BNP.

The minister also said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had taken steps to hold the national election under an all-party government despite not being bound by any constitutional obligation.

Muhith started his speech while placing the national budget for fiscal year 2014-15, saying, “This is the first time in the history of Bangladesh that an elected government has stepped into its second term in office having successfully completed the first one.”

He claimed that this bears testimony to the unflinching trust that the people have chosen to bestow on them.

The minister said the government believes that this continuity will enable it to take forward its development.

Source: UNB Connect