Dhaka ( CNN ) Thirty-one people have been killed and more than 7,000 arrested in weeks of political unrest in Bangladesh , as the country 's opposition mounts mass protests demanding fresh parliamentary elections . The dead were mainly killed by arson attacks on buses and cars , police said . The two most recent victims , who died of their injuries in hospital Thursday , were victims of bomb blasts . The opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party ( BNP ) , along with 19 allied parties , called for general strikes and a nationwide blockade on road , rail and river transport on January 5 , the first anniversary of disputed elections . The BNP and its allies boycotted those elections , with BNP leader and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia arguing they would have been rigged by the government , and refusing to participate unless they were conducted under a neutral caretaker administration . Her arch rival , Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of the Awami League , refused to concede to the demands and coasted to victory . More than half of the parliament 's 300 seats went uncontested . Voting was conducted under neutral caretaker governments in Bangladesh from 1991 until 2010 , when the system was scrapped by the governing Awami League . Communications Minister Obaidul Quader said Wednesday that at least seven drivers and their assistants on public transport were among those killed in the renewed violence , which has seen 200 buses torched in recent weeks . The government has also blocked Viber , WhatsApp and other messaging apps , which it says are being used to coordinate the protests . Industry Minister Amir Hossain Amu , who heads a government committee on law and order , said security forces have detained some 7,015 people in recent weeks , who are still being held . BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir is among those arrested . The BNP claims the true number under arrest is higher . The government is offering a reward of 100,000 taka ( $ 1,300 ) for information leading to the arrest of any of those behind the attacks , Amu said . Bangladesh politics has been dominated by Zia and Hasina for decades , with both enjoying multiple stints in power . Hasina , the daughter of Bangladesh 's first President Sheikh Mujibur Rahman , was first elected prime minister in 1996 , while Zia , widow of assassinated President Ziaur Rahman , first became PM in 1991 . Hasina has blamed Zia for the violence and accused the opposition of trying to foment chaos , while Zia has denied her party is responsible , saying the violence is the work of the government . Both Zia and Hasina have frequently called for mass protests while in opposition . Both their parties had planned rallies on the January 5 anniversary of the 2014 election . After police banned the rallies , the opposition proceeded . Zia was confined to her office by police at the beginning of the protests , which the government said was for her own security . She has since been released .
thousands are dead and 31 under arrest after Wednesday of political unrest in Hasina . The opposition has called for a mass blockade of transport across the country . It is angry that the government prevented 31 elections being overseen by a neutral caretaker .