Bangladesh security forces today laid a siege around the residence of Opposition BNP chief Khaleda Zia, ahead of a massive anti-government rally planned in the capital demanding postponement of the January 5 elections.
Witnesses said police in riot gears took positions around Zia’s house barring party activists and visitors’ entry into its premises at up market Gulshan area. However, it was not clear if the 68-year-old former Prime Minister was kept under house arrest. “We have been working for whatever we think required to maintain law and order and security of all,” police commissioner Benajir Ahmed told reporters without elaboration.
But Zia’s international affairs adviser Shamsher Mobin Chowdhury was quoted as saying in media reports that “since yesterday she has been under virtual house arrest” and alleged that it was part of a government move to foil the December 29 ‘march for democracy’.