Khaleda declines to enrol as voter

Dhaka, Mar 21: Former Bangladesh prime minister Khaleda Zia refused to register as a voter in protest against her ''illegal detention''.

''I am the only person who has been elected Prime Minister three times but they have kept me in jail without giving a single reason and all the cases filed against me are bailable,'' Khaleda was quoted by her counsel Ahmed Azam Khan as saying. ''I refuse to register as a voter being in jail and in protest against the illegal detention,'' she said yesterday. Her attorneys, Azam and Nasiruddin Asim, met her in the special jail on the Jatiya Sangsad complex in the afternoon and had an hour-long conversation regarding the Gatco, Niko and Barapukuria cases, the New Age reported.

Attorney Azam said Khaleda rejected every charge brought against her, saying she had no involvement in any wrongdoings.

''She expressed deep concern over the price situation and urged the government to free the top political leaders who have experience in tackling such crisis,'' the lawyer added.

UNI