After two years of relentless public pressure, Prime Minister Khaleda Zia on Saturday resigned and dissolved Parliament, clearing the way for a neutral authority to hold new elections.
"I am no more the prime minister. I have transferred power constitutionally and I want fresh elections to be held in May," Zia told a crowd of more than 50,000 supporters in the capital Dhaka.Bangladesh has been paralyzed by the political standoff, in which opposition leaders accusing her of corruption and incompetence have called general strikes and often-violent protests. An anti-government strike launched on March 9 has been especially harsh.
Zia had planned to convene Parliament for one last session on Sunday, but that became impossible Saturday when staff workers at the government building decided to join a strike by 1.3 million civil servants.
"There will be no electricity, no water, no microphones," said a member of the Parliament staff, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Ultimately, Zia had Cabinet minister Oli Ahmed deliver her letter of resignation to President Abdur Rahman Biswas - opening the door for a neutral interim government to hold fresh elections within 90 days.
Biswas on Saturday swore-in former Supreme Court Chief Justice Mohammad Habibur Rahman as a caretaker prime minister. Rahman will appoint an 11-member Council of Advisors.
Within an hour of Rahman's ascension, Sheik Hasina, the main opposition leader, called off her protests. "It is the victory of the people. We must sustain the victory at any cost," she said.
Opposition protests turned into celebrations, with activists singing victory songs. People came out on the streets and until late in the evening, cramming Dhaka's main roads with traffic.
The jubilation was marred when police fired tear gas to disperse nearly 3,000 protesters who had gathered outside Dhaka's central jail to demand the release of deposed President Hussain Muhammed Ershad, who is serving a 9-year sentence for corruption and abuse of power.