Bangladesh: Opposition stages massive protest against PM Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka
Tensions were high in the capital in advance of the BNP rally
Two days after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh announced that the country will hold its next general elections in January 2024, Opposition's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) mounted huge protest in the capitalDhaka's Golapbag.
Protests sparked by power cuts and fuel price hikes have erupted across the country in recent months, demanding that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina step down in favour of fresh elections under a caretaker government.
Prior to the Dhaka rally on December 10, two top leaders of BNP were arrested along with 500 supporters for allegedly instigating violence ahead of the rally.
Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, the general secretary of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), and Mirza Abbas, a former minister and member of the party’s top decision-making body, were taken from their homes at about 3am on Friday,Zahiruddin Swapan, head of the BNP’s media wing, told AFP.
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Tensions werehigh in the capital before the rally, which theBNP said would draw hundreds of thousands of supporters from all over the country. The turnout at the rally on Saturday was reported to be 'significant' by local media.
Police said they will not allow a demonstration in front of the party office, which they called a crime sceneafter saying they had found Molotov cocktails at the location.
What are BNP's demands?
The BNP, along with the majority of other political parties and civil societies, haveurged the government to reinstate the three-month non-political caretaker government system in preparation for the December 2023 national election. The governing Awami League government led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, however, has rejected the demand, claiming that it would be contrary to the constitution.
Fifteen foreign embassies, including the U.S., issued a joint statement late on Tuesday calling for the country to allow free expression, peaceful assembly and fair elections, with the UN making a similar declaration a day later.
(With inputs from agencies)
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