2 Days to Vote
Dhaka dates with rallies, processions
Arun Devnath
Dhaka morphed into a city of high-pitched rallies and processions as the election campaign yesterday moved closer to the final lap.
In parts of the city, different rallies continued into late evening.
Awami League President Sheikh Hasina spoke from a high-profile afternoon rally at the Paltan ground in the final hours to the December 29 elections.
As the day wore on, hundreds of thousands of people in processions swarmed into the rallying point. Many danced to the drumbeats and music, a common election-time scenario, as they poured in from different directions.
The weekend holiday worked as an advantage for the campaigners.
Md Rajib, a BBA student, who went to Paltan ground, told The Daily Star: “The rally pulled in many more people than before.”
Rajib noticed a high level of discipline among political activists, which was almost absent in the past.
The four-party alliance also meandered through Dhaka thoroughfares in colourful processions. Adherents of the four-party alliance impersonated farmers and folk singers on the truck-mounted stages.
One procession snaked out of Siddheswari Road shortly before 5pm yesterday, creating brief traffic jams on the road. Farther up, some campaigners were pumping out pop music from a sound system on the roadside. RAB officers were on guard, just yards away.
Dhaka residents found themselves caught in the pockets of gridlock, which was a bit unusual for a Friday. But the days to the elections will be marked by crowds, traffic jams and an unknown number of processions and rallies as expected.
Signs are already out there. As the evening deepened, many election rallies continued much across the city. Political leaders spurred their campaigners with calls to intensify the last-minute door-to-door campaigns.
Courtesy: thedailystar.net
