Commenting that it's time for us to show cruel love, economist and Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) Honorary Fellow Dr. Debapriya Bhattacharya said, there are two parts to reforms, one is the accumulated reforms which should have been reformed by the previous government. The second is what we will do to move towards a middle-income country. If the economic situation does not get relief, we will be hindered in moving towards institutional reforms or elections.

He said these things at a dialogue titled 'Dialogue for Democratic Reconstruction; Economic Policy Issues' organized by the Centre for Governance Studies (CGS) at BIISS on Saturday (October 26) afternoon.

Dr. Debapriya Bhattacharya said, when the state becomes a crony, the ones who are supposed to play the biggest role are you who play a role in creating employment. Then why did those upper class people fail to create a democratic system?

We need to focus on real wages, determine the fair price of goods. Our economic system will determine when we will move towards institutional reforms or elections, he commented.

This economist said, the discussion about reforms is a discussion of the superstructure. But the foundation below is the economy. The economy will determine how we will move forward. Have you ever heard from the citizens who have worked, what will happen to the landless people? I do not see this discussion of paying fair prices for agricultural products among them (the government).

He said, if we think that the interim government, even though they came through a mass upsurge, will solve everything with the help of foreigners. If we live in such a wrong world, then it is wrong to make a revolution. Here, everyone has to fulfill their responsibilities. Especially, we, the people of the upper echelons, should be able to correct and highlight to our new generation the mistakes that we, the people of the upper echelons, have made.

The Citizens Rights Movement has demanded to bring former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to the country for trial in the prisoner exchange agreement with India.

The leaders of the organization made this demand in a written statement at a press conference organized at the Tafazzal Hossain Manik Mia Hall of the National Press Club on Saturday (October 26).

Citizens Rights Movement Secretary General Tushar Rehman read out a written statement at the press conference. At that time, 20-point demands were presented to the interim government. Among the notable demands are the removal of President Md. Shahabuddin, the removal of judges appointed on the basis of party considerations, and the provision of punishment through trial in a special tribunal for all the corrupt CECs and co-criminal ECs of the past.

To ensure exemplary punishment for the autocrat Hasina and her associates and cronies, who have been involved in crimes against humanity including the murder of more than 1,500 students during the mass uprising and the disappearance of opposition political party leaders and activists in the last sixteen years, organized looting of state resources and money laundering abroad, by bringing them back from India in accordance with the prisoner exchange agreement and trying them in the International Crimes Tribunal against Humanity.

The leaders of the formation said that a people-oriented constitution should be formulated by repealing all sections and sub-sections from the constitution that are against public welfare. Including enacting a law that a person cannot be the Prime Minister more than twice, the same person cannot be the head of government and party head for the same term. If a candidate nominated by a party in any constituency of the country is not trusted by the voters, a provision for implementing a 'no vote' should be included in the constitution.

The organization's demands also include that the name of the state should be changed constitutionally from 'People's Republic of Bangladesh' to 'People's Democratic Bangladesh'. The state allowances of fake freedom fighters should be canceled and punished, and arrangements should be made to return the money given, including the removal of those who took government jobs. The pension system of all government employees should be canceled because private employees do not have the opportunity to get pensions. In addition, the unemployed population remains without income and employment throughout their lives.

Citizens' Rights Movement President Major (Retd.) Md. Mofizul Haque Sarkar said, "The anarchy that existed during the period of fascism should not start again. We can see that extortion has started again. There will be a call to the interim government, you should take time to reform the state, and then hold elections. So that the gourd, that is, does not become a pumpkin."

S. Alam Group has protested the news titled ‘S. Alam Group official arrested while fleeing to India’.

This protest was made in a notice signed by the head of the company’s Human Resources and Administration Department, Mohammad Borhanuddin, on Saturday (October 26).

The notice stated that the inclusion of the name of S. Alam Group in the news of Sujan Kanti Dey’s arrest while fleeing to India is false, misleading and defamatory.

Regarding Sujan Kanti Dey, it was mentioned that Sujan Kanti Dey was working as a senior delivery assistant at S. Alam Cold Rolled Steels Limited factory until March 27, 2023. Since then, he had no involvement with S. Alam Group.

The notice further stated that he was first given a show cause notice for attempting to steal goods. After that, verifying all the information, the charges against him were proven. As the allegations were proven, he was dismissed from his job on March 27, 2023.

The company has demanded the withdrawal of misleading and defamatory news published involving S. Alam Group with Sujan Kanti Dey. S. Alam Group has also said that it will take legal action if the news is not withdrawn.

Six passengers of a CNG-powered autorickshaw were killed after being overrun  by a truck in Shibpur upazila of Narsingdi.

The accident occurred in the Pancharbari area of the Monohardi-Shibpur regional road of the upazila around 12 noon on Saturday (October 26).

Shibpur Model Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Md. Afzal Hossain confirmed the matter.

The names and identities of the deceased were not immediately known.