People to resist BNP's efforts to hinder election: Hasan Mahmud

Information and Broadcasting Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud on Sunday said that BNP definitely has the right to boycott elections but if it tries to prevent the election, people of the country will resist them with strong hand.

"It doesn't matter that BNP threatens to boycott the election. They boycotted the city corporation elections, but people didn't boycott it. More than 50% of people cast their votes in those elections," he added.

The minister said this while speaking at a discussion on the occasion of the 19th death anniversary of Ivy Rahman, wife of late President Md Zillur Rahman, at the National Press Club in the capital this afternoon.

At that time, the minister warned BNP and said, "This is not 2014, it is 2023 or 2024. So now the people of the country will not allow an attempt to repeat the anarchy of 2013-2014."

Blaming BNP leaders for the assassination of Bangabandhu in 1975 and the grenade attack in 2004, the broadcasting minister said, "Mostaq and Zia carried out the 15 August massacre and Tarique Zia committed the 21 August massacre. They actually do the politics of murder."

"With all due respect to Ziaur Rahman's wife, I want to say that Begum Khaleda Zia's BNP was in power for ten years but Zia's murder was not tried. Because snakes will come out in search of earthworms," he said.

Awami League Advocate Balaram Poddar, United States Awami League President Dr Siddiqur Rahman, Jubo Mohila League President Daisy Sarwar, among others, spoke on the occasion.