Staff Correspondent

Police halted a protest march arranged by three associate bodies of the BNP — Jatiyatabadi Jubo Dal, Swechchasebak Dal, and Chhatra Dal — near Rampura Bridge in the capital for the sake of maintaining law and order.

When the march reached the bridge from Nayapaltan around 12:35 pm, a large number of police blocked the way with barricades and urged the leaders of the three organisations to cooperate.

Later, a six-member delegation of the protesters was allowed to go to the Indian High Commission to submit a memorandum.

The delegation members included Jatiyatabadi Jubo Dal central president Monayem Munna, general secretary Nurul Islam Nayan, Jatiyatabadi Swechchasebak Dal president SM Jilani, general secretary Rajib Ahsan, Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal president Rakibul Islam Rakib and general secretary Nasir Uddin Nasir.

Earlier, the three associate bodies of the BNP began their road march towards the Indian High Commission in Dhaka on Sunday morning to protest the attack on the Bangladesh mission in Agartala and the desecration of the country's national flag.

The programme was also intended to register protests against what the party describes as an Indian plot to incite communal riots in Bangladesh.

Thousands of leaders and activists from the three BNP associate bodies formally began the march from the party's Nayapaltan central office at 11:30am.

Before launching the march, BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, top leaders from the three organisations, also delivered brief speeches, condemning the Indian ruling party and media for attempting to disrupt religious harmony in Bangladesh through false and misleading campaigns.

Rizvi alleged that what the Indian ruling party is currently doing to bring Sheikh Hasina back to Bangladesh is nothing but direct aggression.

“You (Indian govt) do not like the people of Bangladesh. You do not respect the sovereignty and independence of Bangladesh,” he said in a brief speech before launching a protest march towards the Indian High Commission in Dhaka from Nayapaltan.

Rizvi said Sheikh Hasina fled Bangladesh and took refuge in India in the face of a strong mass uprising.

“What the ruling party of India is doing to bring Sheikh Hasina back is nothing but direct aggression in the language of political science,” he said.

Rizvi equivocally said the 180 million people of Bangladesh are prepared to resist Delhi’s hegemony.

"We know how to use sophisticated equipment to safeguard our country in every domain, from air to sea to land. We have capable members in our smart military,” he observed.

The leaders and supporters of the BNP associate organisations were seen gathering in front of the BNP office from 9:30 am, with small processions arriving from various parts of the capital.

They participated in the programme carrying national flags and festoons inscribed with slogans against Indian hegemonic attitudes. The protesters also chanted various slogans against what they termed Indian aggression in Bangladesh.

The programme was supposed to conclude with the submission of a memorandum to the Indian High Commission, registering their protest against the recent anti-Bangladesh incidents and remarks made by Indian politicians and media.

Earlier, on Saturday, the three BNP associate organisations made the decision to stage the protest march.