Schools and businesses were shut across Bangladesh today as the country's main opposition party enforced a dawn-to-dusk general strike.

Thousands of riot police were deployed in cities across the country. The Bangladesh Nationalist party (BNP) said the strike was called to protest against misrule by the government, harassment of its supporters, and a court decision to pursue the eviction of its leader, the former prime minister Khaleda Zia, from a military-owned house where she has lived for nearly 30 years.

According to the BNP secretary general, Khandaker Delwar Hossain, the police have arrested 3,000 party activists from across the country in the past four days.

He said that today the police had arrested at least 800 activists including a serving MP and three former MPs. Activists from the ruling Awami League and police had injured at least 1,700 activists during clashes across the country, he said.

Delwar demanded the release of activists and said further moves would be announced after party discussions.

The BNP's joint secretary general, Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, said: "The police are detaining our people like foxes catching chickens. The fascist face of the government is being revealed." Sheikh Hasina, the prime minister and Zia's arch-rival, has said the opposition is trying to destabilise the country to protect its own interests.

General strikes are a common opposition tactic in politically unstable Bangladesh and have been known to turn violent. Police said at least 12 vehicles were set on fire last night and petrol bombs were reportedly thrown at Dhaka's university. The opposition strike is the second this month.

The Dhaka metropolitan police commissioner, Benazir Ahmed, denied that the authorities' actions were politically motivated and said that no one had been detained without specific charges.

Opposition activists say the government has failed to keep soaring commodity prices under control and maintain law and order. The exchange of accusations reflects the bitter rivalry between Bangladesh's two major parties and their two leaders as the country struggles to get back to normality following a return to elected government in 2008 after nearly two years under a state of emergency.

Business leaders and industrialists condemned the strike. "As business entrepreneurs we never support strikes as it severely hampers the production and shipment of goods. We urge the political parties to find an alternative to strikes for resolving any discontentment," said Abdus Salam Murshedy, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association.