BNP office locked for 40 days

The headquarters of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), the key opposition, has been under lock and key for the last 40 days, though the country is set to go into a national election after a month.

The BNP and other opposition parties have long been in a movement, with a call to introduce a non-partisan polls-time government. They vowed to boycott all elections until their demand is met.

The police took control of the BNP office in the Naya Paltan area on 28 October, when there was a confrontation between the BNP men and the police centering a grand rally.

Since then, the party and other opposition parties have been enforcing hartals and blockades in phases.

During a spot visit around 12:00 pm on Wednesday, the first day of the 10th spell of blockade, the BNP office was seen locked with no activists on the premises and the policemen in a cautious stance on both sides.

It has been a common scenario for the last 40 days. The BNP leaders said they are not visiting the head office to evade arrest.

The opposition leaders and activists have been facing a continued crackdown since 28 October as the police have arrested thousands of BNP men in various cases.