UNB, Dhaka: The countrywide 48-hour hartal, called by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami protesting the death sentence awarded to its two leaders for war crimes, began on Wednesday morning. The fresh shutdown that began at 6am today will end at 6am on Friday. On Sunday, the Islamic party announced a 24-hour strike for Thursday protesting the capital punishment of its policymaker Mir Quasem Ali for war crimes. On the day, the International Crimes Tribunal-2 unanimously sentenced him to death for crimes perpetrated against humanity, including murder, during the Liberation War. On Monday, it called another 24-hour hartal for Wednesday protesting the verdict of the Supreme Court that upheld the death penalty of its assistant secretary general M Kamaruzzaman. The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on the day upheld the tribunal judgment that had sentenced the Jamaat-e-Islami assistant secretary general to death for committing crimes against humanity during the Liberation War. In a statement on Monday, Jamaat acting ameer Makbul Ahmed and acting secretary general Dr Shafiqur Rahman said they would enforce a 48-hour shutdown from 6am on Wednesday till 6am on Friday. Meanwhile, members of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) have been deployed in the capital as well as different parts of the country on Tuesday evening, ahead of the shutdown. The paramilitary force members started patrolling different city strategic points alongside members of other law enforcement agencies, said sources at the BGB headquarters. Earlier, Jamaat enforced a 60-hour countrywide shutdown in two phases protesting the death sentence against its ameer Motiur Rahman Nizami for his war crimes. The first-phase 24-hour hartal began at 6am on Thursday and ended at 6am on Friday while the 2nd-phase 36-hour one that began at 6am on Sunday ended at 6pm Monday amid lukewarm response. Hours after the International Crimes Tribunal-1 condemned Jamaat ameer Nizami to death for crimes against humanity during the 1971 Liberation War on October 29, the Islamic party announced a 72-hour staggered nationwide shutdown programme. The 2nd-phase strike was originally called for 48 hours until Tuesday 6am, but the Islamist party on Monday reduced it by 12 hours due to the holy Ashura to be observed in the country on Tuesday. The shutdown has wrecked havoc on the country’s education system as many examinations, including the Junior School Certificate (JSC) and Junior Dakhil Certificate (JDC), had to be rescheduled due to the hartal.
