"I had stepped aside from the power 15 years back to protect democracy but now democracy is dead," he said speaking at a rally at Muktangon in the city making the 20th founding anniversary of the JP yesterday.

The nation will have a tough time in the new year, Ershad observed. "The government wants to hold election while the opposition has declared to resist it, which is an ominous sign for the nation."

The former president said: "We want a fair and peaceful election, which will, in fact, remain a far cry and under this situation, the JP has to come to power to fulfil the hopes and aspirations of the people."

"I was compelled to take over power in 1982, I did not want to take the responsibility," the former military ruler said.

If the political parties had joined the parliamentary election declared in 1984, the history would have been written in a different way, he noted.

People of the country did not get anything over the past 15 years, apart from terrorism, deprivation and humiliation, he said.