Staff Reporter :The BNP-led 20-party alliance has extended its ongoing countrywide 72-hour hartal by 36 hours alongside with the non-stop blockade. Now the hartal will continue till 6:00 PM tomorrow (Thursday). BNP joint-secretary general Salahuddin Ahmed made the announcement in a press statement on Tuesday afternoon. The alliance has extended the hartal protesting filing of false cases against BNP chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia, and senior leaders of the alliance and country’s noted persons, abduction and killing of the alliance leaders and workers in law enforcers’ ‘crossfire’, mass arrest and government’s move to control the media. Earlier on Friday, BNP’s another joint-secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmed announced the 72-hour hartal from Sunday morning to today (Wednesday) morning. Later, Salahuddin Ahmed on Sunday threatened to continue the hartal for indefinite period if the government did not restore the connection of Internet, cable, and phone lines to Khaleda Zia’s office.The utility services were severed after the 20-party alliance refused to withdraw the 72-hour hartal ahead of the SSC examination which was scheduled to begin from Monday. Later, the Monday’s examination was shifted to Friday. Today’s scheduled examination was also rescheduled for next Saturday due to extension of the hartal. Khaleda Zia has been detached from the utility services since January 31. The authorities concerned disconnected the electricity supply and communication networks to the office. Later, the electricity supply was restored after 19 hours, but the communication networks were still down till filing of the report at about 10:00 PM on Tuesday. Salahuddin Ahmed came down heavily on the government for its behaviour against the BNP chief. He accused the government of becoming desperate for power. He also alleged that the law enforcers were killing the leaders and workers of the 20-party alliance in the name of crossfire and gunfight. He asked the government to stop the killing and quit power by arranging a fresh election under a non-party government system. Meanwhile, Jatiya Gonotantrik Party (JAGPA) called a dawn-to-dusk hartal in Dhaka city for today (Wednesday) protesting arrest of JAGPA’s Dhaka city unit general secretary and other leaders and workers of the party and the alliance. JAGPA secretary general Khandaker Lutfur Rahman announced the hartal in a press statement.
