Awami League (AL) General Secretary Obaidul Quader today said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has introduced the process of holding free and fair elections in the country.

"In this (general) election, we saw that the candidature of a ruling party candidate was canceled and some candidates were issued show-cause. Sheikh Hasina has established a new instance through this election. It is possible to hold fair election in this country only under Sheikh Hasina," he said.

Quader, also the road transport and bridges minister, was speaking at a joint meeting organised with central leaders and top leaders of AL's Dhaka city units and its affiliated bodies at the party's Bangabandhu Avenue central office here.

He said many countries have appreciated the newly elected government except a party of Bangladesh.

BNP did not join the polls sensing its defeat and those who boycotted the polls are saying different things, he added.

Pointing out the statement of TIB, the AL general secretary said the last general election was not a staged one as observers of many developed countries monitored it.

Even US Ambassador in Dhaka Peter Haas congratulated the new government, after the polls, he said.

The election was a competitive one wherein many independent candidates were elected, while the AL had to take new strategy on polls as the opposition party boycotted it, Quader said.

"Where did the commotion of BNP go? BNP tried to keep people away from polls. But many countries sent observers in the election....the election is being lauded," he said.

The AL general secretary said the country's people have no involvement with the BNP and that is why it has been turned into a party of frustrated ones.

He said BNP leaders locked their office but its leaders claimed that the government made their office locked.

"BNP leaders broke the lock of their office too. Even, they can lock their office and also break the lock of their office," Quader said.

AL presidium members Begum Matia Chowdhury, Dr Abdur Razzaque, Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya, Dr Mustafa Jalal Mohiuddin, Qamrul Islam, Jahangir Kabir Nanak and Abdur Rahman, joint general secretaries Dr Hasan Mahmud, Mahbubul Alam Hanif, AFM Bahauddin Nasim and Dr Dipu Moni, and organising secretaries BM Mozammel Haque, Mirza Azam, Afzal Hossain and Sujit Roy Nandi among others, were present.