Locals continued blocking highways and railways for the fifth consecutive day on Sunday in Bhanga upazila of Faridpur district in protest against the demarcation of the Faridpur-4 constituency by the Election Commission.

Detective, meanwhile, detained a coordinator of the movement late on Saturday night.

The protest began at 6am on Sunday, with residents staging demonstrations in several areas, including Pukhuria, by burning tyres and logs on the roads to disrupt traffic.

At around 9am, protesters stopped the Nakshikatha train at Hamirdi railway crossing on the Rajbari–Faridpur–Dhaka line, forcing passengers to disembark.

Expressing frustration over the disruption, passenger Bachchu Matubber from Rasulpur village in Saltha upazila of Faridpur said he was forced to get off while travelling to Dhaka with a sack of onions for his daughter.

“There was no bus available, so I took the train to Dhaka. But when we reached the crossing at Hamirdi, the roads were on fire and many people were standing in front of the train. It had to stop, and we were made to get off,” he added.

Many other passengers shared similar experiences due to the protest.

Bhanga Railway Station Officer Sakibur Rahman said the train heading towards Dhaka from Rajbari was halted, causing the Sundarban Express coming from Dhaka to Rajbari also to stop at Bhanga Junction.

Protesters block roads in Bagerhat and Faridpur over seat changes

Meanwhile, the Jahanabad Express from Khulna reached Dhaka before it could be obstructed.

Earlier, on Saturday afternoon, Algi UP Chairman MM Siddiq Mia announced a three-day dawn-to-dusk blockade at a press conference under the banner of the ‘All-Party Unity Council of Algi and Hamirdi Unions and Bhanga Upazila’.

Shortly after the announcement, detectives detained him from his residence that night. He was the coordinator of the movement.

Officer-in-charge of Bhanga Police Station Md Ashraf Hossain said Siddiq had been taken to Faridpur by the DB men, though he had not yet been handed over to the local police station.

Constituency delimitation: Protesters block highways in Faridpur for 3rd straight day

The demonstrations follow the Election Commission’s recent gazette, which redrew boundaries for 46 parliamentary constituencies ahead of the upcoming national election.

According to the gazette, Algi and Hamirdi unions of Bhanga upazila, previously under Faridpur-4, have been attached to Nagar Kanda upazila under Faridpur-2.