Ishraque supporters stage road blockade

Supporters of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Mayor-elect Ishraque Hossain blocked on Tuesday the road in front of the Nagar Bhaban demanding that he be immediately sworn in as the mayor of the corporation.

Their demonstration began at 11:30 am shortly after the protesters gathered at the main gate of the DSCC headquarters.

By 12:30 pm, Ishraque's supporters started arriving at Nagar Bhaban in small processions from different areas under the DSCC's jurisdiction, chanting slogans demanding that he be immediately given the mayoral charge of the city corporation.

They said that despite two court rulings in Ishraque's favour, his oath-taking is being delayed by the deliberate actions and bureaucratic stalling of the Local Government Division.

The protesters warned that they would not budge an inch over the issue of administering oath to Ishraque.

During the protest, all entry gates of the Nagar Bhaban remained padlocked, halting administrative work completely.

Since May 15, all types of civic services, including birth and death registrations, issuance of trade licences, and holding tax collection, have been halted.

The supporters of Ishraque Hossain have been on the movement for nearly two weeks over the issue of his oath-taking. They started the agitation on May 14 under the banner of 'Dhakabashi' (residents of Dhaka).

BNP activists and the city corporation employees organised sit-in programmes on the same demand.

Tuesday's blockade programme in front of the Nagar Bhaban severely disrupted traffic.

By midday, long queues of vehicles were seen on the road leading from High Court intersection to Gulistan.

Service seekers expressed dismay as they could not obtain trade licence, birth certificates and other necessary documents from the Nagar Bhaban.

"We don't need to know who the mayor is-just keep citizen services open," said a person preferring not to be named.

On Thursday, Ishraque had suspended the protest for 48 hours to allow the government to make preparations for his oath after a writ petition seeking a bar on his swearing-in was rejected.

But as no steps were taken to swear him in, the supporters resumed protest at the Nagar Bhaban on Saturday, with many DSCC employees and officials joining in solidarity.

Meanwhile, the Local Government Division (LGD) is waiting for the decision of the court regarding administering oath to Ishraque Hossain as the mayor of the Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC), reports BSS.

This is a 'sub-judice' matter as it is under consideration of the apex court, the Local Government Division (LGD) said in a statement on Tuesday.

"Administering the oath to Ishraque Hossain as the DSCC mayor is a sub-judice matter as a leave-to-appeal filed (with the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court) on May 26 by a citizen against the High Court (HC) verdict that rejected a petition on May 22 (clearing the bar for Ishraque to take oath as DSCC mayor), was pending with the apex court. So, the Local Government Division is now waiting for the verdict of the court relating to administering oath to Ishraque Hossain," the statement reads.

talhabinhabib@yahoo.com