Transport services cut off to Khulna as BNP gears up for a rally

Rupsha and Jelkhana piers have suspended passenger service, blocking off another route to Khulna city, as the Bangladesh Nationalist Party gears up for a rally, bdnews24.com reports.

Boatmen at the two piers announced a 24-hour suspension of service from Saturday morning to demand an increase in fares, but the passenger service came to a halt at 9 pm on Friday.

Engine-operated boats make the crossing from the Rupsha to the Jelkhana pier, connecting Khulna city to Rupsha Upazila.

BNP leaders alleged that the suspension of service came about due to ‘political pressure’. The boatmen say their strike was for a hike in passenger fares.

“Bus and launch service was previously cut off to ensure that fewer people attended the rally,” said BNP spokesman Ehteshamul Haque Shaon. “Now two piers have been closed. But our activists are still coming on foot. If necessary they will swim across.”

Meanwhile, BNP activists from nearby districts and upazilas have been streaming into Khulna city for the BNP’s mass rally for the division. Many activists have complained about obstacles in their way.

Ahead of the BNP rally on Saturday, transport owners and workers announced a 48-hour bus strike starting on Friday morning. Launch service to Khulna was also halted. Buses are not running to Khulna from nearby districts either.

Activists have resorted to taking trains or smaller transport to reach Khulna in a scattered way, says Jayanta Kumar Kundu, assistant organising secretary for the BNP Khulna Division.

“Activists have been blocked from coming,” he said on Friday afternoon. “Old cases have been dredged up to harass them. Despite this, activists from every district are overcoming these hindrances on the way to Khulna. Many have already arrived and are staying in different parts of the city, some are with their families, others at mess halls and hotels.”

The streets of Khulna city have largely been empty since Friday morning, but the area around the BNP office on KD Ghosh Road was teeming with activity. Activists started gathering at the office in the afternoon and, by 8 pm, the vicinity was packed to the brim. Many had brought their own mats and pillows to the scene and were passing the time chatting.

The BNP planned the rally at the Sonali Bank intersection. According to BNP spokesman Shaon, the rally is to start at 2 pm on Saturday and end at 5 pm.

The Awami League has denied that it is trying to block its political opponents from attending the rally.

“The BNP is holding a planned rally,” said Khulna City Awami League General Secretary MDA Babul Rana. “We don’t believe that it needs to be prevented or hindered.”

“Transport owners suspended bus and launch services. The pier workers closed the piers. Those are internal matters. The Awami League has not put pressure on anyone to close bus, launch or pier services.”

About 25,000-30,000 people make the crossing at the Rupsha pier, according to the boatmen. Passengers also travel from the Jelkhana pier to two upazilas in Narail and one in Bagerhat.

The boatmen are demanding higher fares for passengers due to inflation and the fuel price hike, according to Md Reza Bepari, chief of the local boatmen’s association. He says the union took the decision to halt passenger service on Friday evening after their demands were not met.

“We had previously sent written petitions to raise the fare to the city corporation mayor, the Khulna deputy commissioner, the chairman of the Rupsha Upazila council, the upazila executive officer and other relevant offices,” he said, claiming that fares had not been raised in line with inflation.

“That is why we called a 24-hour suspension of passenger service on Oct 22 to demand a Tk 1 increase per passenger.”

The suspension of passenger service has overturned the travel plans of many locals. Patients, in particular, have been suffering due to the stoppage.