Police bar ‘Sarat Utsob’ in Old Dhaka's Gandaria

The Satyen Sen Shilpi Group has been unable to hold its "Sarat Utsob” in Old Dhaka’s Gandaria this year after police blocked the event, citing a lack of approval. The annual festival, held for the past 19 years, was initially scheduled to take place at Bakultala of Dhaka University’s Faculty of Fine Arts on Friday morning. However, the venue’s approval was cancelled the night before. The organisers then announced that the festival would be held at the same time at the Kachikanchar Mela grounds in Gandaria. But police intervened there as well, saying the organisers did not have permission for the event. “This has broken a 19-year tradition,” said Satyen Sen Shilpi Group General Secretary Manzar Chowdhury Sweet. “We have...