Metro commuters suffer amid protest

Staff Reporter:

Thousands of commuters faced severe disruption on Sunday as a large-scale protest organized by the Bangladesh Health Assistant Association occupied parts of the Secretariat metro station, causing delays, confusion, and frustration among passengers.

The sit-in demonstration, which began in the morning near the National Press Club, soon spilled over into the Secretariat metro station’s concourse plaza. Protesters, many of whom were seen lounging under fans, sitting on stairs, and gathering in groups inside the station premises, made normal movement nearly impossible for passengers trying to enter or exit.

As the crowd grew, the station authority was forced to shut the metro gate adjacent to the Press Club, redirecting commuters to the opposite gate — a move that angered many.
“If they want to protest, let them do it on the street,” said Mehedi Hasan, a visibly frustrated commuter. “Why are they upstairs too? This is ridiculous. I had to walk around the entire block just to exit.”

Protesters defended their move, citing limited space on the street below. “There wasn’t enough room down there, so we came upstairs,” said one demonstrator.

Acknowledging the inconvenience caused, Akhil Uddin, chief coordinator of the Bangladesh Health Assistant Association, said: “We’re aware of the issue. Our volunteers have been asked to guide participants back to the street level.”

A metro station controller, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that the crowd became so dense that some protesters began eating inside the concourse plaza. “For security reasons, we had to remove them and close the Press Club-side gate,” the official said.