Bangladesh News

The Awami League-led 14-party alliance wrapped up its sit-in programme around the Election Commission (EC) Secretariat in the capital yesterday by launching an unofficial campaign for the next general election.

The activists of the alliance vowed to prepare for the next general elections in a way so that the alliance comes out victorious in the election to form a new government.

Even though they were in a festive mood as they sang and danced during the 10:00am-2:00pm programme at all the three sit-in points, Agargaon, Russell Square and Mohakhali, the 14-party activists warned of further street agitations if the caretaker government failed to implement their proposed package-reforms by Saturday.

The 14-party alliance with its like-minded political parties, who also held similar programme yesterday, will stage a sit-in with 20 lakh people around the Bangabhaban on Sunday if their demands were not met by Saturday.

RUSSELL SQUARE
The 14-party leaders and activists started to gather at Russell Square from 10:00am yesterday. The demonstrators tried to march towards the EC Secretariat around 2:30pm but law enforcers had closed off a part of Mirpur Road near Dhanmondi Road-27 with barbed wire barricades.

Bangladesh Mahila Awami League also brought out a procession with brooms in their hands.

Barred from going any further, the 14-party activists held a rally and concluded the day’s programmes by burning effigies of President and Chief Adviser (CA) to the Caretaker Government (CG) Iajuddin Ahmed and Acting Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Mahfuzur Rahman.

Awami Swechchhasebak League and Awami Jubo League also set-up Bijoy Mancha (victory stage) and Jubo Mancha (youth stage) and held separate rallies on Mirpur Road. A Jatiya Party (Ershad) procession also went to Dhanmondi Road-27 via Russell Square around 2:30pm and marched back towards the way it came from.

Addressing rallies there, 14-party leaders called upon its activists to prepare for the next polls, as their demands are on the verge of being fulfilled. They also urged them to continue their movement until the CG’s package-reforms are implemented.

The AL-led 14-party alliance will hold preparatory meetings, for a sit-in around the Bangabhaban on Sunday, at Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal office today. They will also hold another preparatory meeting at the AL central office tomorrow and agitation rallies at city ward areas tomorrow afternoon.

Despite the advisory council to the CG’s decisions, the EC has not yet been made neutral by changing two partisan election commissioners, said Mohammad Nasim. “This means ‘the conspirators’ are continuing with their plot,” he said.

Fourteen-party leader Obaidul Quader accused that the four-party alliance violated the constitution hundreds of times.

Mukul Bose, Abdul Mannan, Abdur Rahman, Dr Abdur Razzak, Pankaj Bhattacharya, Shahara Khatun, Asit Baran Roy, Bahauddin Nasim also addressed the rally chaired by Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya.

A huge contingent of police and paramilitary Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) personnel patrolled the area to make sure no processions entered the EC Secretariat.

AGARGAON
The 14-party leaders and activists from Mirpur, Pallabi and Kafrul areas attempted to march towards the EC Secretariat with processions around 10:30am. But police, who had set up barbed wire barricades on the Rokeya Sarani at Agargaon, intercepted them.

The 14-party activists, led by Kamal Ahmed Majumder and Ilias Mollah, used two trucks as podiums and held rallies there. Zaker Party leaders and activists had another podium there to hold a rally.

Artistes rendered patriotic songs and parodies from all the three podiums to cheer up their activists during the intervals between their leaders’ speeches.

While addressing the rallies from two 14-party podiums, senior Awami League (AL) leader Motia Chowdhury alleged that the BNP-led four-party alliance is afraid of the administration being depoliticised as they fear a huge defeat in the elections if held in a free and fair manner.

She urged 14-party activists to work sincerely and make sure that the alliance comes out victorious in the next elections to form a new government.

MA Gani and Kamrul Islam also addressed the rallies while Kamal Majumder and Ilias Mollah addressed only their own rallies.

MOHAKHALI
Activists of 14-party, led by AL leaders ASHK Sadeq and AKM Rahmatullah, attempted to march to the EC Secretariat with a procession but they were intercepted at Mohakhali. They later held a rally under the Mohakhali flyover.

Meanwhile, Zaker Party activists vandalised 11 vehicles at Moghbazar and Banglamotor areas in the city as their processions went there.

When the activists, bringing out a procession from their office at FDC intersection, reached Banglamotor, police intercepted it. The activists then vandalised six cars, one three-wheeler and two rickshaws. Police charged truncheons to disperse them.

When they reached Moghbazar, they again vandalised a double-decker bus, one public bus and two private cars until the police managed to disperse them again.

During the vandalism police arrested 20 Zaker Party activists.

Leaders of the party, however, alleged at a press conference in the capital that police swooped on them without being provoked.

“Although activists of Jamaat-e-Islami and Islami Chhatra Shibir attacked Zaker Party men, hurled brickbats at police and vandalised vehicles, the police only arrested Zaker Party activists,” Shamim Haider, assistant press secretary of the party, said in a press release.