The BNP led 18-party opposition alliance has extended the countrywide
blockade until 5:00pm on Thursday for another 59 hours in protest
against Election Commission’s failure to postpone the election
schedule.
BNP joint secretary general Salahuddin Ahmed announced the extension
of the programme through a video message on Monday.
The announcement came in form of a video message recorded at an
undisclosed location. “The blockade of roads, railways and waterways
will continue until 5pm on Thursday. We are extending our programme as
the government has not accepted our demand for a non-party caretaker
government [to supervise the polls] and the schedule for a unilateral
general election has not been cancelled,” Salahuddin said.
Earlier the 18-party alliance announced 72 hours blockade which was
scheduled to expire at 6:00am on Tuesday.
Salahuddin Ahmed called upon the people to observe the blockade
programme even at a little cost of their sufferings, in the interest
of ‘democracy, the country and its sovereignty’.
He said the government has driven the last nail in the coffin of
democracy by completing all the process to hold a lopsided election.
“The loyal Election Commission is directly involved in it,” he said.
The BNP leader said the people want that the election to be held under
a non-partisan government. Otherwise, he said, the government will
collapse like an autocratic one.
After his predecessor Ruhul Kabir Rizvi was taken away by the police
from BNP central office in the early hours of Friday, Salahuddin Ahmed
took over the charge of party spokesperson and kept touch with the
media through video and telephone from a secret place. – Staff
Reporter
Bdnews24.com adds: On Nov 26, the BNP-led 18-Party alliance had called
for a 71-hour blockade rejecting the polls schedule.
They enforced a fresh round of blockade from Saturday after top BNP
leaders were implicated in an arson case.
At least 27 people have been killed across Bangladesh in the two
spells of blockade. Apart from damaging a large number of vehicles,
the railways have suffered extensive sabotage.
Monday was the last day for submitting nomination papers for the
general election. The BNP and its allies have threatened to boycott
and thwart the polls.
As the two major alliances are yet to reach an agreement over the
polls-time dispensation, the US, EU, India and China have been pushing
for a dialogue to end the deadlock.
United Nation’s Assistant Secretary General Oscar Fernandez-Taranco is
coming to Dhaka on Dec 6 amid the turmoil apparently to broker talks
between the feuding parties.
