The decision was taken in an emergency meeting of the alliance held at the Gono Forum office in the capital with Dr Kamal Hossain in the chair.

"We have decided to reschedule the grand rally for November 22 after reviewing the current situation," AL General Gecretary Abdul Jalil told reporters after the meeting.

In the meeting opposition leaders observed that it would not be an appropriate time for such a grand programme, since it would be immediately after the Saarc summit, which is scheduled to be held on November 12 and 13.

They discussed the government's security arrangements for the Saarc summit and apprehended that the government might go for 'mass arrest' of opposition leaders and activists on grounds of ensuring security during the period, sources in the meeting said.

AL and its allies will announce an elaborate programme for an anti-government movement from the Paltan Maidan rally to bring down the BNP-Jamaat led alliance government.

They will also announce their minimum national programme including their economic and political resolutions from the rally.

Jalil said many district and upazila level leaders requested to defer the rally for a week. He also said the people will need some time to return to Dhaka after the Eid.

"Therefore, after reviewing the overall situation we had to reschedule the date for the rally," he said.

"We, the 14 opposition parties, are moving jointly not only to oust the BNP-Jamaat led alliance government but to bring a qualitative change in running the country," said Jalil, also the co-ordinator of the opposition's liaison committee.

He said senior opposition leaders will visit five districts adjacent to the capital on November 16, 17 and 18 to mobilise the people for joining the grand rally.

"We are expecting that people in their thousands will throng the Paltan Maidan on November 22 demanding an end to the BNP-Jamaat led alliance's misrule," he said.

Yesterday's meeting also decided that a team comprising high-ranking opposition leaders will visit Monga hit northern districts. It criticised the government's 'indifference' despite a famine like situation in the northern districts where thousands of people are facing an acute food crisis.

Jalil said the meeting rejected the chief election commissioner's move to prepare a fresh voter list and smelt an ill motive behind it. He however said the opposition is in favour of updating the existing voters' roll.

Senior opposition leaders including Tofail Ahmed, Suranjit Sengupta and Mainuddin Khan Badal were present at the meeting.