Injured participants of the July uprising blocked the road near Shishumela in Dhaka on Saturday afternoon, demanding a ban on the Awami League. As a result, traffic movement on the one-way road from Shyamoli to Dhanmondi has come to a halt, causing suffering to the general public amid intense heat and prolonged gridlock.
The blockade began shortly after 1pm when protesters erected a barricade across the road. Passengers were seen leaving their vehicles and proceeding on foot.
One commuter, Abu Zafar, who was heading to Paltan, said: “They block the road at the slightest excuse. How are ordinary people supposed to move around if this keeps happening? Don’t people have urgent things to do?”
Another individual, Mahbub Sheikh, said: “What they’re doing in the name of protest by blocking the roads is completely unacceptable.”
Meanwhile, a “Shahbagh Blockade” also took place earlier in the day with protesters demanding the banning of the Awami League.
The road in Shahbagh remained closed, although emergency vehicles such as ambulances were being allowed to pass. Victims of the July uprising also gathered at the site.
On Friday, just before dawn, Hasnat Abdullah, chief organizer (Southern region) of the National Citizen Party (NCP), urged supporters via a verified post on his Facebook page not to enforce blockades anywhere in Dhaka or across the national highways except Shahbagh.
In the post, he wrote: “Do not enforce blockades anywhere on the highways in Dhaka or across the country except Shahbagh. Gather spontaneously in districts, hold rallies, but no blockades. Remove the blockades.”