Dhaka, Sept 19 (V7N)- An 11-party opposition alliance led by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami began a long march from Dhaka towards Rangpur on Saturday, pressing the government to meet its eight-point set of demands.
The programme began with an inaugural rally at Manik Mia Avenue in the capital, where Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer and Opposition Leader Dr Shafiqur Rahman addressed leaders, activists and supporters of the alliance.
Alliance leaders said they would overcome obstacles to ensure the programme was completed peacefully and in what they described as the public interest. They also urged activists to avoid provocations and maintain discipline throughout the march.
The alliance's eight demands include implementation of the referendum verdict, trial of those responsible for the July mass killings, resolving shortages of electricity, fuel, gas and fertiliser, controlling prices of essential commodities, improving law and order, ending corruption, extortion and land grabbing, ending narrow partisanisation, and implementing the Teesta Master Plan.
The Teesta Master Plan was added to the alliance's earlier demands ahead of Saturday's programme, bringing the total to eight.
Following the inaugural rally, the long march is proceeding through Gazipur, Tangail, Sirajganj, Bogura and Gaibandha before reaching Rangpur.
Five roadside rallies are scheduled along the route, including stops at Bhogra Bypass in Gazipur, Nagar Jalfai in Tangail, Sirajganj, Bogura and Palashbari in Gaibandha. The concluding rally is scheduled to be held at Rangpur Zilla School.
The alliance has described the programme as part of a broader political movement to press its demands and bring what it calls public-interest issues to the government's attention.
At the inaugural rally, Shafiqur Rahman warned that the alliance's eight-point demands could eventually turn into a single-point demand if the government fails to address them. He urged the government to take the demands into consideration.
END/SMA/AJ
