First sign of alliance with Awami League
CPB, WP, JSD join hands to call hartal for March 6
Staff Correspondent
Four mainstream opposition parties in a first-ever display of unity against the 28-month-old administration of Prime Minister Khaleda Zia have called a hartal for March 6 protesting last week's attack on eminent writer Prof Humayun Azad.The Awami League (AL), Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB), Workers Party (WP) and Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD)-Inu will jointly enforce the dawn-to-dusk countrywide shutdown, leaders of the four parties announced at separate press conferences at their party offices in the city yesterday. The left-leaning 11-party conglomerate also lent its support to Saturday's general strike. The deadly attack on Azad and government failure in tracking down the assailants prompted the political convergence of the four opposition parties, who have so far been unable to forge a common platform in the current spate of anti-government activities. Announcing the agitation programme at his party's Dhanmondi office, AL General Secretary Abdul Jalil said the shutdown also aims to protest government's obstruction of opposition leader Sheikh Hasina's way to the Combined Military Hospital to visit Azad, filing of 'false cases' against Hasina and her party leaders, killing and political repression, foiling of the opposition's political programmes at the government's behest, price hike of essentials and to press home the demand for mid-term elections. "We have talked with the top leaders of like-minded parties on the latest political development including the attack on Azad and they agreed to carry out simultaneous movement aimed at toppling the government," he said. Jalil predicted a more concrete alliance with the parties shortly. Announcing the general strike, JSD President Hasanul Huq Inu was optimistic that the progressive opposition political parties would soon be able to forge a greater unity. Saturday's hartal would be the fifth in the last one month, with the AL enforcing the first four hartals on February 12, 14, 16 and 28. Making declaration of the daylong general strike, CPB President Manzurul Ahsan Khan demanded immediate arrest of Azad's assailants and removal of the BNP-Jamaat ruling alliance. Earlier yesterday, top AL leaders held separate dialogues with the CPB, WP, Gono Forum, Bangladesh Samajtantrik Dal in a bid to form a greater oust-government alliance.
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