আজকের আলজাজিরার সংবাদ। Bangladesh opposition leader locked in office Last updated : 2 hours ago Khaleda Zia confined to her office and rallies banned a day before first anniversary of polls her party boycotted . Bangladesh police have banned all protests in the capital Dhaka from Sunday and locked main opposition leader Khaleda Zia in her office , ahead of the first anniversary of an election her party boycotted. Zia had threatened to hold mass rallies in the capital to mark Democracy Killing Day on Monday marking a year since the polls that her Bangladesh Nationalist Party ( BNP) and its Islamist allies refused to join, alleging the ruling party would rig the vote . She has been confined in her office . Police have cordoned off the area and barricaded [ the ] road . She wanted to see a sick party colleague around midnight , but they did not let her out , Zia s aide SR Shimul Biswas told the AFP news agency . Al Jazeeras Tanvir Chowdhury , reporting from Dhaka, said Zia has been confined to her Gulshan office since Saturday night with police , including women officers , deployed outside her office . Police banned all protests , meetings and demonstrations in the capital from 5 pm ( 11 : 00 GMT ) Sunday until further notice to prevent violence after the ruling party announced rival rallies . We imposed the ban as rival rallies by the political parties raised fears of clashes, Dhaka police spokesman Masudur Rahman told AFP. Buses and ferries heading to the capital were halted , virtually cutting the city from the rest of the country , operators said, amid fears tens of thousands of opposition activists would march to Dhaka . Breakdown in democracy The main opposition headquarters in central Dhaka was padlocked by police at midnight on Saturday , according to local television channels , with police vans barricading nearby roads. A bus was torched near the office but there were no reports of injuries. Toby Cadman , an international human rights lawyer who has advised Bangladeshi opposition politicians on war crimes , told Al Jazeera that there has a breakdown in democracy in Bangladesh . He said the country was far from a democracy and that the authorities had tried to shut down any form of protests ; any form of criticism . There has been a general trend of curtailment of rights , Cadman said, adding that courts were being used to get rid political opponents. Zia was forced to spend the night at the party office , the aide said , despite attempting to leave by car . Police inspector Firoz Kabir denied that Zia was forcibly kept in the office . We ve not detained her , only her security has been enhanced . She is not leaving her office , he told AFP. Opposition figures arrested Police also stormed the home of the party s deputy leader, the private Somoy Television channel said , and arrested senior leader and key party spokesman Rizvi Ahmed , who fell ill and was taken to a hospital by police escort . Zia had been attempting to visit Ahmed . Tension has been rising in the politically volatile South Asian nation since January 1 when Zia demanded fresh polls under a neutral caretaker government and threatened to bring the country to a halt if her demand is not met. BNP officials said at least 400 party supporters were arrested , including two other senior party figures , ahead of the poll anniversary . Zia s decision to boycott the farcical election handed a walkover victory to her bitter rival Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina after no vote was cast in the majority of the parliamentary seats . Zia was confined to her home in the build - up to last year s election , but was released after the polls .
Posted on: Sun, 04 Jan 2015 13:23:28 +0000
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