A dispute between the Sirajganj District Bus Owners Association and Mohakhali Bus Terminal Road Transportation Owners Association has resulted in an indefinite strike, while bus services on the Dhaka-Sirajganj route have been suspended for the past five days.
The Sirajganj District Bus Owners Association called the strike on Thursday morning.
Sirajganj District Bus Owners Association President Jinnah Almaji said: "We have called the indefinite strike according to the previously declared ultimatum, protesting against the disorganized activities of the Dhaka's Mohakhali Owners Association, which have created obstacles in the movement of buses on the Dhaka-Sirajganj route."
He also claimed that buses, trucks, CNGs and auto-rickshaws are not running on the Dhaka-Sirajganj route because of the strike.
Speaking to local journalists, Mohakhali Bus Terminal Road Transportation Owners Association's General Secretary Abdul Malek said: "60-70 Sirajganj buses are running for a long time from the three counters in Mohakhali, but our association doesn't have any buses on the route. We have appealed to the leaders of the Sirajganj District Bus Owners Association about this issue over the last three months, but to no avail.
“We even proposed to sit down with them, but they did not respond. Even the BRTA Chairman sent them a letter to sit for a discussion in his office, but they denied. On the contrary, they have put up barricades at Kadda on the west side of the Bangabandhu Bridge, beat up our staff and broke the windows of our buses," he added.
Commuters on the Sirajganj-Dhaka route are greatly suffering due to the strike.
