BNP stages big protest, mounts pressure on Yunus to hold polls

Muhammad Yunus took charge of an interim government in Bangladesh after the toppling of then PM Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government in August last year

- Associated Press

DHAKA, BANGLADESH: 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 (BNP) headed by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia gathered on the streets outside its party headquarters, under heightened security.

Political tensions 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.