Transport workers have blocked traffic in the entire Gabtoli area over an incident of alleged harassment by traffic police.
As a result, no vehicle has travelled through Gabtoli or entered the capital via the route as of 10:30am on Thursday, reports bdnews24.com.
The protest has triggered traffic congestion throughout a large section of Dhaka as a key entry road to the capital has been cut off.
The incident that sparked the protest occurred around 10:30am on Thursday.
Transport worker Al Amin said a traffic policeman had unnecessarily harassed a driver, saying that his vehicle’s windshield was damaged even after checking his documents and finding them to be in order.
“At one point in the argument, the police officer beat the driver. Later both sides got into a scuffle."
All on-duty police personnel in Gabtoli later left the area as the situation deteriorated. The workers then blocked the road with their vehicles.
Gabtoli Inter-District Bus Terminal Transport Workers Union President Md Abbas Uddin said, “I heard that covered van workers have blocked the road. Allegedly, a traffic police sergeant slapped one of the drivers.”
Yasmina Ferdous, additional deputy commissioner of the Mirpur Traffic Division, said: "We are busy trying to convince the workers protesting at Gabtoli."
However, she did not provide any details about the cause of the incident.
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