BNP HQ wears deserted look on strike day

The BNP’s Naya Paltan headquarters wears a deserted look, with most leaders of the party behind bars.

Party’s Joint Secretary General Salahuddin Ahmed, who had been addressing news conferences after senior party leaders were thrown behind bars, was also picked up on Monday night.

The BNP has called the 36-hour strike to protest the detention of its top leaders.

An advisor to party chief Khaleda Zia, Shamsuzzaman Dudu, went to the Naya Paltan headquarters at around 8:15am on Tuesday but got involved in scuffles with police.

The law keepers eventually allowed Dudu to enter the party office. Once safely inside, he lambasted the authorities.

“The government has turned Bangladesh into a police state. They (the government) want to destroy democracy,” he alleged.

He said the people of the country were ‘panic-stricken’ due to the way the government was running a regime of torture.

Several top BNP leaders were denied bail on Sunday over strike-related cases and sent back to jail.

“Our movement will continue until our leaders are released,” Dudu said.

Police and RAB personnel were seen in front of the BNP headquarters with anti-riot vehicles and water cannons.

The main gate of the party office was closed and detectives could be seen in front of it.

Unlike previous occasions, rickshaws and auto-rickshaws were seen plying in good numbers on the street in front of the party’s office. Businesses on both sides of the street, however, remained shut.

Source: Bd news24