Traffic chaos in city as Ansar, other professionals stage protests

Heavy traffic crippled the capital city today as protests by various groups, including members of Bangladesh Ansar and VDP, school peons, and Ibtedayee madrasa teachers, clogged multiple intersections, causing widespread suffering for commuters.

Ansar and VDP members blocked the road in front of the Secretariat, demanding the nationalisation of their jobs.

Thousands of Ansar members gathered, chanting slogans and halting traffic for hours. Around 1:20 PM, some Ansar members entered the Secretariat through gate no-3, defying law enforcement. Security forces quickly closed the gate after about 50 members had entered, but the protesters continued to chant slogans to realise their demand.

Alamgir Hossain Sagar, an Ansar member, declared, "We are prepared to go wherever necessary—the Secretariat, National Press Club, or Ansar headquarters—to realise our demand. We will not leave the streets until our demand is met."

Later, Home Affairs Advisor Jahangir Alam Chowdhury announced that the interim government would consider their demands.

According to the Ansar members, the Home Ministry has formed a seven-member committee to address the demands, expected to report within seven working days.

Following this, Nasir Mia, the coordinator of the movement, postponed their protest.

There are 59,130 affiliated Ansar members across the country.

Simultaneously, peons and security guards of government primary schools staged protests in Segunbagicha, demanding job nationalisation and an 8-hour workday, halting the traffic movement in the area for hours.

They currently work nearly 24 hours, serving as peons during the day and guards at night.

Other groups also held protests, including the Bangladesh Independent Ebtedayee Madrasa Teachers Association, community clinic health volunteers, apprentice lawyers, and dismissed workers from the Intercontinental Hotel. These protests, demanding job nationalisation, regularisation, reinstatement, and examination system reforms, further disrupted traffic in the city.

At the same place, the Bangladesh Independent Ebtedayee Madrasa Teachers Association held a sit-in programme demanding the nationalisation of independent Ebtedayee madrasas.

After completing the programme here, they proceeded to Jamuna, the residence of the Chief Adviser.

On the other hand, illegally dismissed workers and employees of the capital's five-star hotel Intercontinental are protesting in front of the hotel to place their 14-point demand, including the quick removal of its managing director (MD) Atiqur Rahman and all corrupt officials and syndicates.

Additionally, lawyers, under the banner of Bangladesh Anti-Discrimination Apprentice Lawyers and Chhatra Oikya Parishad, formed a human chain in front of the press club to place their five-point demands.

Their demands include reform of the Bar Council's lawyer enrollment examination system, conduct of at least two examinations every year, and lawyer enrollment examination under the Bangladesh Bar Council.