A few days ago we had commented on the unmitigated pain inflicted on the commuters of Dhaka city when the Chhatra League organised a rally to commemorate its founding. Similar pain was wreaked on them on January 11. 

The homecoming of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is a memorable day in the history of independent Bangladesh. The significance of the day is immense and there is need to commemorate it in a befitting manner, but we fail to see why steps were not taken to ensure that the city was not brought to its knees with unbearable tailbacks. Thousands of commuters were forced to sit in their vehicles for hours on end since ruling party activists brought out massive rallies from their respective localities to march to the meeting venue. Sadly, patients had to suffer the most. Not only that, we found VIP movement using the wrong side of the road while Dhaka residents were forced to suffer massive gridlocks in many parts of the city.

This phenomenon is not new. Every time an important event is commemorated, we find the police failing to check the unauthorised movement of rallies on busy roads of Dhaka. The January 5 rallies were held with many conditions, we wonder where were these conditions on January 11?  Do people have to go to the rally in processions occupying all busy roads leading up to the meeting venue? 

There will be other major events unfolding on a regular basis in the capital and we call upon the authorities to take concrete measures like earmarking a portion of the road for processions, if at all.