January 5 is the day marked as the day of the victory of democracy in the country and it has been observed accordingly in major cities, districts and upazila levels with several programmes held nationwide.

The day observed today reminded all that on this day, three years back in 2014, Awami League won the 10th Jatiya Sangsad polls, defeating all conspiracies and barriers, and formed the government for the third time.

For this reason, the day is regarded to the nation as the Victory Day for Democracy.

Awami League and other pro-liberation political parties and social organizations held elaborate programmes to mark the day across the country. The programmes included holding rallies, processions and human chains at district, city and upazila levels.

As part of the central programmes, Awami League Dhaka South and North units organized two separate rallies at Russel Square and at Bangabandhu Avenue. Senior Awami League leaders spoke on the occasions and vowed to protect country's democracy at highest cost.

They said the country got rid of a major conspiracy orchestrated by BNP and its fundamentalist ally Jamaat-E-Islami in late 2013 as Awami League showed its guts to hold general elections amid boycotts from then main opposition. The democratic process was restored by the January 5, 2014 general elections, they added.

Centering the January 5 national polls, the BNP-Jamaat combine created unprecedented anarchy throughout the country unleashing vandalism, destruction, killing, subversive acts in the name of non-stop siege and hartal programmes.

In its bid to thwart the national polls, the BNP-Jamaat alliance with anti- liberation forces created panic by killing people, setting ablaze buses-trains, derailing trains by removing fish plates while its armed cadres put into flames 111 polling centres, chopped off a polling officer and few other poll officials, snatched away election materials, blasted petrol bombs a day before the polls.

But braving intimidation and threat on their lives, some 42 percent people exercised their franchise in the polls to the 10th Jatiya Sangsad for the sake of continuation of the constitutional democratic practice in the country. The BNP-Jamaat combine wanted to jeopardize the national polls unleashing terrorism, intimidation and widespread anarchy ostensibly for installing another 1/11 like undemocratic government.

Facing a stiff challenge and widespread anarchy, the government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina restored peace with improvement of law and order across the country through holding of the national polls that cleared the way for continuation of democracy.

Awami League bagged 234 seats in the polls to the 10th Jatiya Sangsad, Jatiya Party (Ershad) got 34 seats and Awami League's allies like Workers Party secured six seats while Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) won five seats and constituted the Awami League-led alliance government on January 12 in 2014.

Awami League said Jamaat-Shibir-controlled BNP wanted to grab power through unconstitutional means. The BNP, along with anti-liberation Jamaat-e-Islami, still wants to push the country into darkness again, they observed.

Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD), an ally of the present government, also held a separate programme at Bangabandhu Avenue to observe the day.

JSD President and Information Minister Hasanul Haque Inu, party leaders Nurul Akhter, Dr Anwar Hossain, Advocate Habibur Rahman Shawkat, Nader Chowdhury, Shafi Uddin Mollah and Shawkat Raihan spoke on the occasion.