Although the long march has not disrupted law and order or hampered public life, the government, in a press note on Friday, termed it 'illegal'.

While cracking down on the opposition leaders and activists ahead of an opposition programme in 2004 the government said there was a 'conspiracy' against the country. Last year the government sponsored a transport strike to foil another opposition rally.

This time the government has come up with an explanation that the law enforcement agencies, in order to maintain peace, will thwart any attempt by any political party or group to 'create law and order situation and damage public property.'

When the opposition gave an ultimatum to the government to step down by April 30, 2004, police arrested about 15,000 people from across the country. Several thousand others were arrested in September 2004 ahead of an opposition rally on October 3.

Last year the government adopted a unique technique to foil the November 23 'grand rally' of the 14-party in Dhaka. The government-backed transport union called a strike before the rally in a bid to prevent people from coming to the capital.

The strike was continued until the end of the opposition programme but the rally saw the participation of several lakh people from across the country.

As the blanket arrests of opposition leaders and activists and innocent people continue, the government is saying that it has the duty to maintain law and order, although there were no reports of violence since the beginning of the march on February 2.

Over 10,000 people were arrested until yesterday evening. Besides, police allegedly prevented many buses from coming to Dhaka carrying opposition activists.

Eminent jurists and rights bodies earlier strongly decried the crackdown, terming it a gross violation of basic human rights and asking for an immediate end to it. But the government has so far been indifferent to the demand.

Contacted for their versions, the government policymakers declined to talk about it.

A government press note on Friday said some political parties have announced a long march towards Dhaka and the leaders and activists of the parties are making 'provocative' speeches at the public meetings on this occasion.

The press note also expressed apprehension of a slide in law and order and tarnishing of Bangladesh's image abroad. "Any kind of programme that creates sufferings to people and cause damage to their property is against the existing law," it said.

The press note also identified the Dhaka long march as 'Dhaka siege programme' in a total distortion of fact.

Although this long march is not a violent programme like hartal, which too is a democratic right, the government is using the administration across the country to stop the opposition activists' march towards Dhaka, by using existing laws.

The arrests are made using section 54 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) and section 86 of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Act.

Also, the government is learnt to have tasked the police with controlling the transport sector to stop opposition activists' march towards Dhaka.

Human rights activists said the government action could be acceptable if the long march caused any sufferings to people or create anarchy. Without these, the government action can simply be termed as a gross violation of human rights.

Much to the surprise of people, the prime minister in April 2004 said that the mass arrest was needed to foil the 'conspiracy' which she did not elaborate. But the government failed to show any reason for the mass arrest ahead of October 3, 2004 rally that was convened to protest the assassination attempt on Sheikh Hasina that killed 23 people.

After both the occasions, the civil society and rights bodies took the matter twice to the High Court to stop the misuse of laws and the mass arrests. The High Court ordered the government to submit a list of those arrested, but the petitions are yet to be disposed of.

Meantime, the law enforcers were learnt to be collecting a huge amount of money from arrest business. Many of the arrestees are being released in exchange for money.