The deadline disrupted people's lives, discouraged foreign investment, sent down points in stock exchanges, Bhuiyan told a press briefing in Dhaka yesterday.

"Abdul Jalil and his leader, Sheikh Hasina, should apologise to the nation and return to fold of constitutional politics by joining parliament," said Bhuiyan, also the local government, rural development and cooperatives minister of the four-party ruling coalition.

Bhuiyan said he was sorry for mass arrest of people ahead of the deadline, but alleged the step was taken to foil the conspiracy of the AL and Proshika, an NGO, to unleash hit men and micro-credit beneficiaries in Dhaka to create anarchy.

"We are sorry for arrests of innocent people in the bid to catch criminals. But the innocent people were released immediately," he said, terming media reports based on interviews of the arrestees and their relatives in front of Dhaka Central Jail as 'purposeful'.

"We have evidence that they (AL) hired killers from around the country and tried to lure micro-credit beneficiaries into the capital in collusion with Proshika with promises of further loans to create anarchy," Bhuiyan said.

On the 'continuity of AL conspiracy', he asked people to keep a careful watch on upcoming events.

"This government will remain in power for another two April 30s in this term," he stressed.

On Jalil's claim that the AL gained a moral victory by unnerving the government with the deadline, Bhuiyan said, "How can they gain a moral victory as what they did in the last months were immoral?

"We thank Mr Jalil for the deadline as it helped BNP activists shed their differences and unite to strengthen the organisation."

On the AL politics, Bhuiyan said, "They have chosen the path of suicide. They have tremendously suffered from the deadline failure.

The leaders and activists of the party are now totally demoralised.

"I don't think the AL leaders and workers even believed Jalil when he said he could bring the government down by April 30."

Answering to a question on the credibility of the evidence gathered from Proshika when two high officials of the NGO appealed to retract their confessions, Mannan said, "Criminals always say they are not guilty as soon as they are out of the police station."

The government will take necessary legal actions after investigation into Proshika's political agenda.

BNP Joint Secretary General Tarique Rahman and leaders Abdullah Al Noman, Mirza Abbas and Nazrul Islam Khan were present, among others.