The opposition alliance has extended its countrywide blockade to 6:00am Friday to press its demands for rescheduling of the parliamentary election, installation of a non-party polls-time government and release of leaders.
The announcement, which came through a video message, turned the ongoing 72-hour blockade, which began at 6:00am Saturday, into a 144-hour one virtually eating up the whole week.
BNP spokesman Salauhuddin Ahmed released the video message from unknown locations.
Ahmed, a joint secretary general of the main opposition, is now hiding to avoid arrest.
The fresh blockade would throw an already heavily suffering business sector into further loss while education and other sectors undergo major disruption.
With the election less than a month away, Jatiya Party, a key ally of the ruling Awami League until recently, announced of boycotting the polls saying that it would not be acceptable if all parties do not join.
All six JP ministers and an adviser to the PM have offered to resign to the party chairperson, HM Ershad, and their letters were sent to the premier by post.
Ershad, last Wednesday, also instructed his party’s aspirant lawmakers to withdraw their nomination for the 10th parliamentary election.
Analysts believe the polls will be hardly be credible with main opposition BNP and its allies keeping off the polls and JP’s recent decision to break away from the polls-time government.
The JP, meantime, demanded that the Election Commission to announce fresh schedule for the next general election so that all political parties participate in the polls.
Visiting UN Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs Oscar Fernández Taranco Saturday met the PM and sought to know from Hasina if there was any scope for deferring the polls date. To this, Hasina said the Election Commission could decide on that.
Source: The Daily Star
