, Dec. 16 -- Environment adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan on Tuesday said the election scheduled for February would lay a strong foundation for democracy by strengthening accountability to people.

"The election would help solidify democracy and bring the government under public scrutiny. The journey toward building a discrimination-free and exploitation-free society, a dream yet to be fully realised, could begin from here," she while talking to reporters after paying tributes to the martyrs at the National Memorial in Savar.

Calling the upcoming polls more than just an election, Rizwana said it would also serve as a kind of referendum where people would be able to express their views on key reform issues.

Based on that mandate, she said, th...