No hartal call for today

The BNP-led 20-party alliance has decided to spare people from hartal for today but continue the blockade, after enforcing shutdown for 37 working days, except for one day, since February 1.

Instead of hartal, the alliance announced to stage countrywide demonstrations today, demanding return of missing BNP leader Salahuddin Ahmed and victims of enforced disappearances.

However, it could not be learnt whether the ongoing blockade, which enters into its 79th day today, will continue on the Independence Day tomorrow.

Asked, BNP standing committee member Nazrul Islam Khan and Khaleda Zia's press secretary Maruf Kamal Khan did not clarify the issue.

On the party's programme on the Independence Day, BNP joint secretary general Barkat Ullah Bulu in a press release said, "All leaders and activists of the 20-party alliance are being requested to observe the Independence Day in a befitting manner."

Earlier, the alliance did not withdraw the blockade on February 21, the Language Movement Day and International Mother Language Day. There was no hartal on the day as it was weekly holiday. 

On Bangladesh's historic achievement in qualifying the ICC Cricket World Cup quarterfinal, the BNP-led alliance on March 9 announced to relax the hartal for 12 hours.

Meanwhile, the 78th day of non-stop blockade and the last day of 72-hour fresh spell of shutdown passed off almost peacefully yesterday.

Apart from the blockade that is being enforced since January 6, the opposition combine has been enforcing hartal on every working days since February 1 demanding holding of a fresh election under a non-party administration.

Meanwhile, Land Minister Shamshur Rahman Sharif yesterday said on instruction of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the ministry has formed "resistance committees" comprising of public representatives of union parishad and other local government bodies to protect land offices from arson attack during blockade and hartal.

Sharif was talking to reporters at his village home in Ishwardi.

In Habiganj, police sued 18 Jamaat-Shibir men on charge of setting fire to a goods-laden truck at Bahubol upazila on Monday, reports our Moulvibazar correspondent. 

In Joypurhat, police arrested five students and a teacher of Khanjahanpur Modinatul Ulam Hafezia Madrasa in connection with vandalising a truck yesterday.

The students--aged between 12 and 16 -- are Shibir activists, police told a press briefing held at Joypurhat Police Station.