Tens of thousands of students and youths from a leading Bangladeshi political party rallied in the capital, Dhaka, on Wednesday, calling for a general election in December as discontent grows with the interim government appointed after the ouster of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina in August.
Activists from three groups linked to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, or BNP, headed by former prime minister Khaleda Zia gathered on the streets outside its party headquarters, under heightened security.
Wednesday’s rally was held after weeks of political tensions after interim leader and Nobel Peace laureate Muhammad Yunus threatened to quit and the influential military chief publicly declared his support for an election in December.