Staff Reporter :The BNP-led 20-party alliance has called a 48-hour hartal in Dhaka and Khulna divisions and day-long hartal in some other districts from today (Wednesday) morning, protesting the killings, forced disappearances, abduction and arrest of its leaders and workers. The alliance also demanded immediate release of all its detained leaders and workers across the country. The shutdown programme will be observed in all districts of the two divisions, including capital Dhaka and Khulna city, BNP joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmed told media on Tuesday. He said that the hartal would begin at 6:00am on Wednesday and end at 6:00 am on Friday. The shutdown will continue simultaneously with the on-going countrywide non-stop blockade programme enforced by the BNP-led alliance.The hartal will also be observed protesting the arrest of leaders and workers of the organisation and the 20-party alliance, and for repression on them by the government during the ongoing blockade programme, said a press release issued by Abdus Sattar Patowary, office secretary of the JCD.Besides, local unit of the JCD called a day-long hartal in Sylhet, Pabna and Rangpur districts for today and Joypurhat for tomorrow (Thursday) protesting the government repression. The 20-party alliance also called dawn-to-dusk hartal in Sylhet for today, Joint convener of Sylhet BNP Ali Ahmed confirmed.Jessore district BNP also called hartal in the district for today demanding release of BNP acting secretary Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and other leaders and workers. It also called for withdrawal of false cases against BNP standing committee member Tariqul Islam and others. Jamaat-e-Islami called a dawn-to-dusk hartal in Narail for today protesting the killing of its leader and ward commissioner Imrul Quayes, who was killed in Dhaka in the early hours of Monday in a ‘gunfight’.The 20-party called a 36-hour hartal in Chittagong division from Tuesday morning protesting the arrest of its leaders and activists. The hartal will end today noon. The shutdown will continue simultaneously with the non-stop blockade programme.The Islamic University unit of the JCD also called a 36-hour hartal in Kushtia and Jhenidah districts from today morning in realization of its four-point demand. President of the unit Omar Faruque made the announcement of the hartal in a press release yesterday.
