Opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) on Thursday called a 48-hour nationwide strike demanding the cancellation of the January 7 general elections, claiming that it was meant to install Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s ruling Awami League government for a fourth straight term. The announcement came a day after Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal said that the much-awaited general elections will be held on January 7. BNP’s senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi called the two-day general strike starting from 6 AM Sunday. “Everybody in Bangladesh knows the outcome of this election,” senior BNP leader Abdul Moyeen Khan said. The opposition continued to enforce intermittent nationwide transport blockades since October 28, disrupting supply systems, demanding Prime Minister Hasina’s resignation to make way for a neutral government to conduct the polls.
