Defending its chairperson's comment that Padma Bridge is being constructed with patchworks, BNP now demanded an international probe into the bridge project bringing the allegation of huge corruption in it, reports UNB. Speaking at a press conference, party secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir also alleged that the much-sought bridge may not 'last long as it is being made with a defective design'.

"Our chairperson didn't say anything wrong as the Padma Bridge won't last long since it is being constructed with a wrong design. Rather, she (Khaleda) acted as a true patriot as she warned the government to be alert and change the design for its proper construction," he said.

The BNP leader further said, "There has been corruption in the project as the Tk 8,000 crore project now turned into Tk 30,000 crore one. Newspapers ran reports on corruption in the project. We also think there's widespread corruption in it. An international probe is needed to look into it."

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia at a recent discussion at the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB) said the under-construction multipurpose Padma Bridge is risky to get on as it is being constructed with patchworks.

Reacting to Khaleda's comment, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday called her an 'insane'.

"It's true that a bridge is made attaching different parts. But what she meant by patchworks is not understandable to me... I'll say it's better not to concentrate much on the remarks of such a mad person. Any person with a sound brain can't utter such words," the Prime Minister told Parliament.

Protesting Hasina's comment, Fakhrul said Khaleda made her comments based on the media reports and experts' opinions. "The experts are saying the Padma Bridge is being made with a faulty design. They're also saying pilling for making pillars of the bridge is not done properly."