Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today said Awami League never used the backdoor for grabbing power, rather it always assumes state power through elections.

“Awami League (AL) always assumes power through elections. It never grabbed power using the backdoor as AL is not an organisation that was created from the pocket of any military dictator,” she said.

Sheikh Hasina, also the President of ruling party Awami League, made these remarks while delivering her introductory speech in the meeting of Awami League Central Working Committee (ALCWC). She chaired the meeting held at her official residence Ganabhaban.

She said the development of the election process has been made by the AL government as transparent ballot box, voter list with picture and EVM were the demand of her party to ensure the voting rights of mass people.

“We want that people can apply their voting rights . . . if people don’t vote for us, we wouldn’t come to power,” she said, adding that AL was always kept aside from power through conspiracy repeatedly.

Mentioning that AL is the party of land and mass people, she said this party always works for the welfare of the masses.

The Prime Minister thanked the people of the country for putting Awami League in power repeatedly by casting their votes in favour of the party.

“Due to this, the country witnessed huge development in the last 13 years, the living standard of the people has been increased as AL is the party of people and soil of this country,” she said.

Sheikh Hasina said after assassination of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1975, Ziaur Rahman had started the culture of vote rigging in the country violating Army Rules and the Constitution through grabbing power.

And in this way duck and drake had been played with the fate of the people of Bangladesh, she observed.

Awami League, she said, has never been behind in terms of the percentage of votes, but there have been repeated conspiracies to keep the party away from power.

“Enemies can never do harm unless the enemy of house can harm, which is a reality,” she said, adding that “in case of Awami League it has always been happened and it is the most unfortunate and sad issue.”

The premier said Awami League moved ahead amid conspiracies, strengthening the organisation and worked always with specific goals to “bring smile on the face of the people in miseries as dreamt by Bangabandhu.

Sheikh Hasina questioned the legitimacy of BNP leadership as “both (Khaleda Zia and Tarique Rahman) are convicted for corruption . . . ten-truck arms case, August 21 grenade attack, siphoning off orphan’s money and others misdeeds”.

“Rightists, leftists and extreme leftists now have joined with them,” she said.

The premier also criticised a section of “ultra-learned” men who always look to foreigners “as if they will install them to the state power”.

“They defame the country, some of them staying abroad,” she said.

Laying emphasis on strengthening the party further as polls is coming nearer, she said that Awami League always holds the council regularly.

Talking about the move of the BNP-Jamaat clique and their alliances to oust the government from the state power, the prime minister said, “What is the fault of the Awami League and in which area we have failed?”

The head of government said that her government has put importance on the development of the rural areas since 2009. “As a result, the infrastructures of the rural areas have been improved a lot and people could go to their village homes smoothly,” she said.

In this connection, Sheikh Hasina said that this year people traveled to their villages on a hassle-free manner to celebrate the Eid-Ul-Fitr with their near and dear ones. She thanked the communications minister to this end.

“This move has increased money circulation in the rural areas which is beneficial for the country’s economy though such trend has been decreased in the world,” she said.

The premier said that Bangladesh now became the role model of development in the world. “We will follow our own path to develop the country and will move around the world keeping our heads high,” she said.

Mentioning that the government has handed over some 33,000 houses just before the Eid, she vowed to arrange houses for all homeless people of the country as they would hand over another 34,000 houses in next July and later the remaining 45,000 houses.

Referring to the socio-economic development of the country during the tenure of the AL government, Sheikh Hasina said the country has reached the status of developing country, per capita income has increased and poverty has been reduced from 40 percent to 20 percent.

She continued that you people will find in the upcoming census report that poverty has been reduced in such a way that the world will be surprised.

In the wake of the Ukraine-Russia war, the premier said that global commodity prices have increased, but the price in the country has not hiked in such a way due to quick and effective measures of the government.

She said that various developed countries have witnessed around 10 percent inflation while it is 17 percent in other European countries and the United States pondering that their inflation will be 10 percent in the future.

Mentioning that as edible oil is not available, Sheikh Hasina said a rationing system has been introduced in London where none could buy more than one liter.

The war (Ukraine-Russia) has pushed the freight charge higher severely while the goods that used to be imported in the country are becoming unavailable.

So, all of you have to consider these new challenges, she added.