Several people were injured in the attacks, a police
official said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak
to the media. He gave no further details.
Opposition groups, led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia,
are calling for the dawn-to-dusk general strike on Sunday to protest government
moves to amend the constitution. The government wants to repeal a provision
that requires it to hand over power at the end of its term to a nonpartisan
caretaker administration to oversee elections.
The opposition accuses the government of attempting to cling
to power after its five-year term ends in 2014. The government denies the
allegation.
Dhaka police Commissioner Benazir Ahmed says thousands of
security personnel were being deployed in the capital and elsewhere to prevent
violence. Schools, stores and transport lines are expected to be closed.
The South Asian nation has a history of political violence,
and opposition groups commonly enforce general strikes to highlight their
demands.
Under the constitution, prime ministers must step down after
a five-year term to allow a nonpartisan administration to conduct new polls in
three months. A former chief justice is usually chosen to head the caretaker
administration.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government has recently said
the caretaker provision should be repealed because it puts an unelected
government in power.
