Besides, Khaleda is spending more time holding rallies and is on a whirlwind campaign tour. She has put in every ounce of her strength to visit as many spots as possible within the shortest possible time. The BNP chief starts her day around 9:00 in the morning and continues her tour and rallies late into the night. On one occasion at least, she addressed a 5:00am rally.By comparison, Hasina has kept her campaign much truncated. She usually starts her day around 10:00 in the morning and wraps up her tour by 5:00 in the afternoon. Also, her campaign footprint is smaller than her archrival's.
Hasina has been innovative in using technology to widen her reach. The AL has rented a satellite from Singtel and set up three studios -- one at Hasina's Sudha Sadan home, and two mobile ones -- to hold live videoconferences. Hasina's addresses are shown on huge LCD screens at places and she also invites live questions from the audience to answer. Such technology was used at Tungipara and Satkhira.
Security threat is forcing Hasina to measure steps for her campaign. Party insiders said she had curtailed her tours. Hasina also reaches her rally spots way beyond schedule and deliberately does so to offset security threats. The recent Huji threat to kill her has made her tour plans much more difficult.
Khaleda is usually at her rallies on time. But subsequently as the day wears on, her schedule becomes erratic because of delays at each spot.
Despite the security threat, Hasina has retained her usual manners of often stopping her car on her way to hug, say, an old woman or a child and talk to them. Khaleda maintains her official attitude. Only once in her tour did she stop to meet some women supporters at Rajbari in Magura.On one occasion, Hasina when returning from Kotalipara to Tungipara in the afternoon stopped her car and went straight inside a mosque to offer her prayers.
The two leaders' campaign theme and issues are quite different. Hasina started her campaign in a positive mood, never criticising the caretaker government. She also hardly focuses on criticising the BNP about which all she alleges is that the party had resorted to looting, corruption and patronising militancy.
But such criticism does not occupy much of her speech. She rather focuses on her Vision 2021, her futuristic dream of Bangladesh. And Hasina tries to put on a smiling face at every rally.
By contrast, Khaleda makes harsh criticism of the caretaker government and the AL as the focal point of her speech. She talks of a 'collusion' between the AL and the caretaker government and talks of 'saving the country, saving the people', the theme of her party's manifesto.