March 25, 2008	Tuesday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 16, 1429

DHAKA, March 24: Former lawmakers in Bangladesh vowed on Monday to defy a government order to vacate their luxury flats, saying they had nowhere else to go.

The military-backed government, which owns the flats, says they must leave because the term of the last parliament ran out in October 2006.

“It is our right to reside in the flats until the elections for the next parliament are held,” said Shahjahan Khan.

“The government does not respect the ex-lawmakers. They want us to vacate the flats so that bureaucrats can stay there. It is a question of our pride,” said Khan.

“If they come and evict us forcibly, we’ll take our families and belongings to the streets. Most of us don’t have any residences in the capital. We have nowhere to go other than our constituencies in the countryside.” Secretary of the works ministry A.S.M. Rashidul Hye told reporters on Sunday the politicians would have to vacate the flats by end of March.—AFP