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.
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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.
