Staff Correspondent

BNP and like-minded parties will hold rallies in all metropolitan cities on March 18 to press home their 10-point demand, including holding the next general election under a non-party caretaker government.

The fresh programme of the simultaneous movement came from the opposition’s human chain programme observed in all district towns and 13 organisational divisional cities, including Dhaka on Saturday.

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Alamgir announced the programme while addressing a human chain in front of the party’s Nayaplatan central office. The senior leaders of BNP and its alliance partners also led the human chains in different areas of the capital, others cities and districts towns and announced a similar programme for March 18.

The programme is also meant for registering the opposition parties’ protest against the rise in the prices of power, gas and essential items, and mounting pressure on the government to quit power and to release BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia without any condition, drop the 'false' cases against her and other party leaders and activist and accept the party’s 10-point demand.

Apart from BNP, Ganotantra Mancha, Jatiyatabadi Samamona Jote, Gonoforum and People's Party, Jatiyatabadi Samamona Jote Peshajibi Ganatantrik Jote formed human chains separately and announced a similar programme for March 18.

The Dhaka south and north city units of BNP formed human chains separately in the city’s Nayaplatan and Badda areas respectively.

Party standing committee member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain led the human chain programme of the Dhaka north city units. It was the ninth programme of the simultaneous by BNP and other opposition parties.

From December last year, BNP and like-minded parties and alliances started a simultaneous movement to bring down the government, or at least realise the all-important caretaker or non-party provision ahead of the next election.

Besides, the leaders and activists of BNP’s Dhaka north and south city units observed a road march programme in five areas in the capital since January 28.

The party also arranged a similar programme in all unions, districts and divisional cities across the country to press home their 10-point demand.