Dhaka: The BNP-led 20-party alliance on Tuesday extended its ongoing 72-hr countrywide hartal by 48-hr till 6:00am Friday demanding the safe return of ‘missing’ BNP joint secretary general Salahuddin Ahmed to his family members.

Hot on the heels of its 72-hour nationwide hartal programme that is scheduled to end 6:00am on Wednesday, BNP joint secretary general Barkatullah Bulu, on behalf of the alliance, announced the fresh hartal programme.

The hartal will be enforced alongside the 20-party’s nonstop countrywide transport blockade.

Besides, the alliance will stage demonstrations across the country on Thursday to push for the demand.

Bulu urged the country’s people to arrange prayer sessions in mosques, temples, churches and other worship places on Friday for the wellbeing of Salahuddin.

Earlier on Saturday, the BNP alliance called a 72-hour nationwide hartal for the seventh consecutive time from 6:00am Sunday to push for its various demands, including a fresh national election under a non-party administration alongside its ongoing countrywide indefinite transport blockade.

Though it had extended their earlier 6th consecutive 72-hour hartal to 48 hours on the same grounds, the alliance for the first time called a fresh 48-hour hartal to push for a different issue.

BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia enforced the blockade for an indefinite period on 5 January after having failed to come out of her Gulshan office to join a planned rally of the 20-party alliance in the city to mark 'Democracy Killing Day'.