At least two people were killed and more than 100 injured during sporadic clashes between hartal supporters and activists of the ruling Awami League (AL) during the first day of the countrywide 60-hour hartal. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-led 18-Party Alliance enforced the hartal to press for its demand for a non-partisan election-time government for holding free, fair and neutral parliamentary polls. The shutdown programme will end at 6pm on Wednesday.
In Lalmonirhat, a local BNP activist was shot dead and 25 people were injured in a clash with police and Awami League workers in Patgram upazila under the district. The deceased was identified as Nasiruddin, 22, son of Mintu Mia of Sahebdanga in the upazila.
Witnesses said the clash broke out when local Awami League activists obstructed a BNP procession, brought out in support of the ongoing hartal at Patgram upazila in the district around 8am.
As the police tried to bring the situation under control, the hartal supporters attacked them, prompting the law enforcement personnel to open fire, which left Nasir Uddin dead on the spot.
In Chittagong, an official of a private company was killed when picketers attacked a running Tempo at Bohaddar Hat area in the port city during the hartal hours. At that time, the victim was on his way to office at Kalurghat Industrial area and the picketers attacked the moving vehicle. The victim was identified as Mohammed Jakir, 31, son of Mohammed Ali Hossain of Dampara area in the port city. He was the commercial manager of C&A Group of Companies at Kalurghat in Chittagong.
Earlier, the opposition alliance had enforced another 60-hour countrywide shutdown from 6am on October 27, which ended amid widespread violent clashes, vandalism, arson attacks and crude bomb blasts, leaving 15 people dead and over 7,000 people injured across the country.
On Monday, stray incidents of violence including explosion of crude bombs, vandalism, arson and police chases and counter-chases marked the hartal in different parts of the capital Dhaka although there was presence of the members of law-enforcement agencies, including the police, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) in large numbers on the streets.
Sources in the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) headquarters said over 12,000 additional police personnel will remain on alert at different strategic points of the city to preclude any untoward incident. Besides, plainclothes police remained on the streets with still and video cameras at the city’s strategic points for identifying troublemakers during the hartal hours.
Hartal supporters torched a training car in Mirpur-14 at around early in the morning. Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal activists brought out a procession in Bijoy Sharani area of the city at around 6:15 am. Police personnel dispersed it.
Jamaat-Shibir activists brought out a procession at East Nakhalpara in the morning, which was later dispersed by the police.
Jamaat-Shibir activists tried to torch rail sleepers in Moghbazar Railgate area and the police charged batons to disperse the hartal supporters. Four crude bombs were exploded in Badda area by the hartal supporters in the morning. A crude bomb was exploded from a procession of Jamaat-Shibir activists at Mirpur-10. and another thrown from a procession of Jamaat-Shibir activists at Azimpur at around 6:35am.
The police detained four activists of Chhatra Shibir, Chhatradal and Sewachhasebak Dal with crude bombs at the Jatrabari area and sentenced them to four to six months’ imprisonment.
The police detained two picketers from Banashri area while they were organising a picket. The police picked up two picketers from Banani area when they tried to set a vehicle on fire. Picketers hurled crude bombs targeting army vehicle in the morning.
Shibir activists torched two buses at Dhanmondi-15 bus stand in the morning. The police detained three Shibir activists from Aminbazar area when they were picketing.
Two crude bombs were exploded on the premises of the chief metropolitan magistrate (CMM) court in old Dhaka in the afternoon. Police recovered two crude bombs from the Judge Court premises in the morning. Jubadal activists brought out a procession in front of RK College at Syedabad and blasted several crude bombs in the morning. Two crude bombs were also blasted near Mohshin Hall of Dhaka University.
Chhatra Dal activists blasted four crude bombs in front of Bangla College in Mirpur at around 8:00am while JCD men set fire to tyres on a road at Balurmath area in Gabtoli and blasted two crude bombs at around 6:45am.
Educational institutions and most shopping malls remained closed, but
government and non-government offices in the capital were open, though attendance was thin.
City commuters largely used rickshaws and auto-rickshaws as fewer motorised vehicles were present on the streets, unlike any other hartal day. No long-route buses have left Mohakhali, Saydabad and Gabtoli terminals since morning as the operators apprehended vandalism.
All types of media and fire-brigade vehicles, ambulances and vehicles carrying Hajj pilgrims have been kept out of the purview of the hartal.
The Awami League and its front organisations brought out anti-hartal processions and urged the people to boycott the shutdown.
Sporadic incidents of violence were also reported from elsewhere in the country.
In Laxmipur, picketers blasted at least 20 crude bombs in front of Adarsha Samad Academy, Uttar bus stand, Dakkhin Temuhni and Alia Madrasa areas of the district town in the morning.
Earlier, activists of the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami brought out a procession expressing support for the hartal in different areas of the town at around 7am.
In Comilla, a group of eight to nine BNP-Jamaat picketers attacked Jubo League leader Monir Hossain with machetes and sticks at Laksham High School at around 9:00am. He was admitted to Comilla Medical College Hospital with stab injuries in his back and hand, said Abul Khair, officer in charge of Laksham police station. At least 40 crude bombs were exploded in different parts of the town, police sources said.
Two BGB platoons have been deployed in Chouddogram upazila from 6:00am on Monday to prevent any untoward incident, said Major Jahid, deputy commanding officer of BGB Battalion-10.
In Gazipur, hartal supporters set ablaze a microbus on the Dhaka-Mymensingh Highway at Shalna in the city at around 6:30am and a bus in front of Sena Kalyan Bhaban on the same highway at around 7am. Picketers torched a covered van at Chandana intersection in the city during hartal. Its helper sustained severe burn injuries. Hartal supporters also staged demonstrations by torching tyres at Natun Bazar in Konabari in the morning.
In Bogra, at least five people were injured in a bomb blast. They included an assistant government pleader (AGP) of Bogra district and sessions judge court at around 12pm at the courtyard.
Witnesses said two powerful bombs exploded when miscreants hurled them on the top of a corrugated iron shed in front of the main gate of the district judge’s court from near Altafunesa playground outside the court. Earlier, picketers vandalised two trucks at Noy Mile in Sahajanpur upazila at around 7am, injuring its driver.
In Patuakhali, at least 20 people were injured in a clash between local Awami League and BNP activists in Rangabali upazila during the hartal. Witnesses said the clash erupted when local Awami League men obstructed a procession brought out by BNP activists in support of the ongoing hartal in the upazila headquarters around 12:30pm.
At one stage, both groups attacked each other, leaving 20 people from both sides injured.
In Narayanganj, at least six Juba Dal activists were injured when they engaged in a chase and counter-chase with police when law enforcement personnel resisted a Jubo Dal procession in Nitaiganj area in the city around 8:00am.
The picketers exploded 12 crude bombs targeting the law enforcers, prompting them to fire 12 shots, Monjur Kader, officer-in-charge of Narayanganj Model police station, said. In Rangpur, hartal supporters torched a motorbike in front of Daradi cinema hall in the city at around 9:00am.
Meanwhile, picketers vandalised at least seven battery-run auto rickshaws at different key points of Rangpur city.
In Jhalakathi, the police detained 10 local BNP leaders, including its organising secretary, from different parts of the town apprehending violence.
In Pirojpur, picketers damaged several vehicles, including a motorcycle and human haulers, during the hartal, leaving five persons injured. The police also detained at least 17 local BNP leaders, including its general secretary Alamgir Hossain, apprehending violence.
Incidents of violence were also reported in Kustia, Chuadanga, Chapainawabganj, Munshiganj, Dinajpur, Jessore, Pabna, Brahmanbaria, Madaripur and Tangail, leaving several persons injured.
-With The Independent input
