Addressing a public meeting in the Adhar Chandra High School grounds in Savar, Khaleda called upon AL lawmakers to return to parliament. "Let us work together for development. Come to parliament and raise your demands or any other issue on the floor."

The prime minister said her government would not obstruct any democratic and peaceful agitation of the opposition, but would never allow anyone to resort to vandalism and anarchy in the name of hartal.

"Cases will be filed under the Speedy Trial Act, if anyone indulges in vandalism and damages people's property in the name of hartal," she cautioned.

Khaleda said her government was still showing a lot of tolerance towards the opposition, but would not hesitate to take tougher actions to protect life and property.

Rejecting the opposition's demand for the government's resignation, she said resignation was only a possibility if and when the opposition brings a no-confidence motion in parliament and gets it passed. That, she said, would be the only democratic and constitutional process of removing a government.

Terming AL's hartal a terrorist activity, she wondered how the main opposition party could claim itself to be the proponent of democracy and human rights when it hinders people from going to work, assaults women in rickshaws, sets passenger buses on fire and damage other national properties in the name of hartal.

The government cannot allow anyone to commit such crimes, she said, and accused the AL of resorting to frequent hartals to hinder the widespread development progra-mmes of her government.

She blamed the AL for the attack on eminent writer Dr Humayun Azad ahead of its hartal programme, saying it was a ploy to disrupt peace by creating an issue. She expressed her shock at the incident and said Azad would be provided modern treatment facilities and his attackers arrested for punishment under the speedy trial act.

Communications Minister Barrister Nazmul Huda, State Minister for Labour and Manpower Amanullah Aman, State Minister for LGRD (Local Government, Rural Development) and Cooperatives Ziaul Haq Zia, lawmakers Dr Dewan M Salahuddin Ahmed and Barrister Ziaur Rahman, and local BNP leaders also addressed the rally.