Slack shutdown ends in Sylhet

The six-hour hartal (shutdown) called by BNP to press home their demand for tracing missing leader M Ilias Ali ended in Sylhet on Monday without any major incident.

The district unit of BNP first called a daylong hartal for Monday but it was later curtailed for holding the namaz-e-Janaza of Motwalli (caretaker) of the shrine of Hajrat Shahjalal (RA). The janaza is scheduled be held after Zohr prayer on Monday.

Pickets vandalised four auto rickshaws and a pick-up van at the city’s Shibganj and at Shahi Eidgah at about 7:30am, reports our Sylhet correspondent.

Separate processions were brought out at Zindabazar and Shibganj in the city.

Law enforcers picked up two activists of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, MC College unit, on charge of picketing at Mirabazar in the city.

Some auto-rickshaws and rickshaws were seen plying on the city streets in the morning but the bus service remained suspended.

Additional contingents of police and Rapid Action Battalion were deployed at different city points.

Meanwhile, the BNP city unit withdrew Tuesday’s hartal, which it called demanding the same, as the party’s countrywide procession programme with black flags has also been scheduled for Tuesday.

The BNP-led 18-party alliance has called another hartal on May 2.

Ilias Ali, also central organising secretary (Sylhet division), along with his driver Ansar Ali was abducted from the capital’s Banani area April 17 last year.