The blockade caused severe traffic jam on the highway

The leaders and activists of Gono Odhikar Parishad blocked the Dhaka-Mymensingh Highway today in protest of the beating of their President Nurul Haque Nur.

The blockade programme began outside the Barsha Cinema Hall at Chandana Crossroads in the Basan Thana area of ​​Gazipur metropolis at 6:00pm and ended around 7.30pm.

The blockade caused a long traffic jam on the Dhaka-Mymensingh Highway. Commuters heading home faced extreme hardship.

"Suddenly, supporters of the Gono Odhikar Parishad blocked the highway. This caused a severe traffic jam on the highway," said traffic police inspector Tariqul Islam, who is in charge of the Chandana intersection area, adding that they were working to bring the situation under control.

Pathan Azahar, a local leader of the Gono Odhikar Parishad, said, "We blocked the highway to protest the beating of our central president, Nurul Haque Nur. And we demand an immediate ban of the Jatiya Party. "

Meanwhile, Basan Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Shahin Khan confirmed to The Daily Star that vehicular movement came to a standstill on both sides of the highway during the protest.

Locals said that hundreds of passengers and vehicles were stuck on the highway due to the sudden road blockade. However, the activists later left the highway and took their protest to the Moshjid Market area, normalising the traffic in the highway.