Hartal extended till Friday morning

FE Report | Published: February 11, 2015 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

The BNP-led 20-party alliance has extended its ongoing 72-hour nationwide hartal till 6am Friday, the 36th day of indefinite blockade across the country.
Joint Secretary General of BNP Salahuddin Ahmed made the announcement through a press release on Tuesday afternoon. The ongoing 72-hour hartal was to end at 6 am on Wednesday.
However, the third day of 72-hour hartal and 36th day of blockade passed off almost peacefully.
In a statement, Salahuddin Ahmed, on behalf of the alliance, announced the extension of the shutdown programme.
The hartal is going on alongside the BNP alliance's nonstop countrywide transport blockade demanding resignation of the Hasina government, holding of fresh election and protesting the arrest of its leaders and activists and the killing of its workers.
The hartal is also for registering the 20-party alliance's protest against interference in judiciary, control over media and torture on journalists.
The shutdown programme is being observed to press home the alliance's demand for restoring human and basic rights of people, securing release of the 20-party leaders and activists, including BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
The 20-party also had enforced hartal for five consecutive days from Sunday last week, halting the holding of the Secondary Scholl Certificate (SSC) exams during the hartal hours.
No procession or picketing was seen in the city in support of the hartal on Tuesday. Presence of motorised vehicles was almost normal on the capital's streets.
A large number of law enforcers remained deployed in different parts of the capital to fend off any trouble.
Besides, police arrested at least 400 people, mostly BNP-Jamaat men, from different districts, including 89 in Brahmanbaria,47 in Rangpur, 10 in Gazipur, 9 in Munshiganj, 14 in Bogra, 10 in Natore, 6 in Chandpur, 19 in Gaibandha, 35 in Noakhali, 5 in Manikganj, 17 in Chittagong, 24 in Dinajpur and five in Chuadanga.
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