B'desh says violence won't prevent polls

DHAKA, Aug 26 (Reuters) Bangladesh's army-backed interim government said today violence and curfew would not stop the authorities from holding a credible election by the end of the next year.

''The incident won't deflect Bangladesh from its roadmap to hold a credible election by December next year,'' Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, a government adviser with responsibility for the foreign ministry, told western diplomats.

Bangladesh imposed a curfew in Dhaka and five other cities on Wednesday after student-led protests against the presence of troops on Dhaka University campus turned violent and spread across the country.

One man was killed and nearly 300 were injured in clashes with security forces before the curfew was declared.

Police said they had arrested 17 people, accusing them of participating in or instigating the violence, and initiated cases against more than 87,000 students across the country for suspected involvement in the unrest.

British ambassador Anwar Choudhury told reporters after a meeting at the foreign ministry that all Bangladeshis should work hard for a free and fair election.

''We have support for the interim government,'' he said.

''We believe the student unrest was initially spontaneous but later it turned into a coordinated violence.'' He did not say who he thought had coordinated the violence.

The interim administration took over in January with a promise to hold free and fair elections late next year. It imposed emergency measures to restore order after widespread violence led to the scrapping of elections in January.

The interim government also launched an anti-graft campaign that has netted scores of senior figures.

REUTERS KK KKP1920