The BNP and like-minded parties have announced a 36-hour road, rail, and waterway blockade across Bangladesh starting Tuesday morning to protest the schedule for the next national election announced by the Election Commission.

This marks the 11th phase of the blockade program launched by the opposition since October 31.

The blockade is scheduled to begin at 6am Tuesday and conclude at 6pm on Wednesday, as declared by Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, the senior joint secretary general of the BNP, during a virtual press conference.

Rizvi said the government's handling of the election, scheduled for January 7, involves widespread arrests and ongoing torture within and outside prison facilities. According to Rizvi, the underlying motive behind these actions is to instill fear in voters' minds.

In response to the government's alleged suppression of opposing views, Rizvi reported incidents of interference with the human chain program and unwarranted persecution of workers in Dhaka and other parts of the country.

On Sunday, BNP leaders and activists formed a human chain in Dhaka to mark International Human Rights Day. The event, held in front of the National Press Club, featured prominent BNP leaders and family members of victims of enforced disappearances and political killings.

As a result of the human chain program, one side of the road near the National Press Club was temporarily closed. The program concluded at 12:30pm, with leaders and activists from various organizations gathering adjacent to the press club.

Throughout the day, BNP members conducted small marches, chanting slogans demanding the government's resignation. The program's official commencement included reciting the holy Quran around 10:55am, chaired by BNP Standing Committee Member Selima Rahman.

“The people of the country are united against the fascist government. Bangladesh is number one in terms of human rights violations. We are on the road, we will be on the road. We will surround Bangladesh in holding processions. However, we will not accept the election of this government,” she said.

Selima Rahman said: "BNP leaders and activists are not being given fair rights in jail. Today, the judiciary of the country is running under the orders of one person. There is no human rights violation anywhere in the world like Bangladesh. The government has closed BNP's many offices including the central office.”

Central leaders, including Afroz Abbas and Syeda Asifa Ashrafi Papia, actively participated in the human chain program. Despite the heavy presence of law enforcement, several hundred BNP leaders and activists assembled in the area to attend the program.

Simultaneously, the BNP organized human chains across the country, including in the capital, in collaboration with the family members of victims of enforced disappearance and political killings, commemorating International Human Rights Day.

All district units of the opposition party observed a similar program on the same day to draw attention to human rights violations in Bangladesh, as stated by the party during a press briefing on Saturday. Rizvi expressed the party's intent to observe the program as a symbolic protest against injustice successfully.