One person was killed and several injured in clashes between opposition activists and law enforcement officers Sunday as an 84-hour nation-wide strike began in Bangladesh, police and politicians said. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led opposition alliance of former prime minister Khaleda Zia called the strike to demand a non-partisan caretaker government oversees next year's general elections.
The opposition fears that the Awami League-led ruling coalition of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina might rig the polls.
One person died in the south-eastern port city of Chittagong, police officer Liakat Ali said. The strikers exploded home-made bombs and set vehicles on fire in other places, including the capital Dhaka.
A BNP spokesman claimed that more than 500 opposition activists were injured in attacks by the police and ruling party cadre. Police detained more than 1,500 activists during the strike, said Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, a BNP leader, adding that the government has resorted to repression.
The shutdown followed two 60-hour general strikes in the last two weeks, during which at least 20 people were killed and scores injured.
Most schools and businesses were shut, while traffic was thin in usually crowded Dhaka. In elections since 1996, the government has stepped down before the vote to allow a neutral caretaker administration to oversee the process. The system was designed to prevent the party in power from attempting to manipulate the vote.
But the current coalition scrapped that system after a court ruling in June 2011. Hasina has invited the opposition to join an all-party government to oversee the elections, but Zia insists on a non-partisan caretaker administration.
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