men flee their houses, 3 cases filed
Police allegedly ransacked some 50 houses and beat up some people in Hashara area in Munshiganj early Tuesday seemingly in reprisal for the killing of a colleague the previous day as panicky male members flee their houses fearing arrest.
Police beat up some 20 locals at Hashara Bus Stand indiscriminately Tuesday morning a day into Monday’s mayhem that left a policeman killed another 100 including 70 policemen hurt.
Panicked, many students kept away from their schools and farmers from their fields.
Sreenagar police filed three separate cases in connection with Monday’s clashes between law enforcers and people protesting the proposed Bangabandhu International Airport in Arial Beel.
Police accused some 6,000 to 7,000 locals in each of the cases. Police and Rab men arrested six people from the area after filing of the cases.
Advocate Abdul Matin, a public prosecutor and president of Awami League’s Munshiganj town unit, meanwhile, filed another case against 3,000 people with BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia as the chief accused, our Munshiganj correspondent Farhana Barna.
A visit to the Hashara union gave The Daily Star an idea of the panic prevailing among the people since the death of the policeman Monday.
Shopkeepers in Lashkarpur Bazar, Alampur Bazar, Dhali Bari Bus Stand, Hashara School Bus Stand area kept their shutters down giving the areas a deserted look.
A woman cleaning her house in Laskarpur Tekpara in Munshiganj after police allegedly ransacked it early Tuesday. Photo: STAR
“Who would dare to open their shops after last night’s police action? Besides, police have also filed three cases,” a small tea stall owners who opened his stall for a short time told The Daily Star.
“Fearing reprisals, some of the people stayed in the Beel in the night while some took shelter in nearby villages,” said Aminul Islam, a local youth of Lashkarpur who also stayed outside his house.
The tension and subsequent police raids in the area did not let many SSC candidates take proper preparation for their examination that began Tuesday.
“The SSC examinees were so frightened that they even seemed panicked before entering the exam halls,” Mohan, a middle-aged man of Laskarpur, said.
Meanwhile, Armed Police Battalion (APBn) men swooped on innocent pedestrians and rickshawpullers near Hashara bus stand at around 11:45am. Local shop owners at the bus stand said about 10 to 12 people were picked up by the police.
Chinu Rani Sarkar, mother of Ajay Sarkar who was beaten and picked up by APBn members, said, “My son was not involved any demonstration on Monday. He came back from his in-laws’ house today [Tuesday].” There were luggage with the mother and the son when the son received police attacks.
They assaulted a reporter of ATN Bangla Shawkat Milton and a cameraperson of Baishakhi Television MK Rahul, when they went to cover the incident.
Officer-in-charge of Sreenagar Police Station, Shakhawat Hossain, however, denied the allegation of vandalism and said they conducted an operation to rescue four firearms “which the demonstrators looted setting fire to Hashara police outpost”.
He claimed one of the four shotguns was found abandoned in Sreenagar Monday midnight.
However in-charge of Hashara highway police outpost Ozear Rahman contradicted the statement on missing of police firearms, saying they risked their lives on Monday to successfully save those.
He said that only 15 rounds of bullets were lost during the incident.
MIDNIGHT ACTION
The police action in Tekpara village in Laskarpur in Hashara Union Parishad began hours after Monday’s series of clashes during the blockade organised to protest the proposed airport on Arial Beel.
Locals said policemen and others in black dresses went there in a number of vehicles.
“Over 100 policemen in uniform and black dresses started the operation at around 2:00am Tuesday while we were sleeping,” an elderly woman, told The Daily Star, preferring anonymity due to fear of reprisal.
Visiting several houses in the Lashkarpur area in was seen that showcase, almirahs, fridges, window glasses of several houses were vandalised. The law enforcers stormed into the houses and vandalised furniture and beat up the inmates when they protested.
Sabirunnesa, a 70-year-old widow who lives in her two-room house with her widowed daughter, said the intruders vandalised their showcase, window and fan.
The family of Ratan, an expatriate Bangladeshi, also underwent similar experience.
“I saved Tk 8,000 painstakingly over a long time to pay instalment for a microcredit loan. But the law enforcers took it away,” Shilpi Begum, a poor woman who lives in a small hut, said as she wiped her tears.
Momena Begum, the wife of Sheikh Mokhles, a local farmer, alleged the intruders vandalised their showcase and almirah and took away her earring, necklace and Tk 50,000.
“My husband was not staying home last night fearing that police might begin mass arrest,” she said.
The police also raided and vandalised his house, Saidur Rahman, a rickshawpuller, said.
Asked about police excess, Sreenagar OC Shakhawat Hossain said: “No member of police was involved in any kind of vandalism and assaulting anyone. There was no mass arrest.”
He said policemen were just trying to recover four missing firearms of police.
Police beat up Nurul Huda, Imam of Uttar Laskarpur Jame Masjid, to bar him from making any announcement on mosque loudspeaker about the police action, said Aminul of Lashkarpur.
4 CASES FILED
Three separate cases were filed after 2:30am Tuesday in connection with Monday’s clashes.
Inspector Farid of Sreenagar Police Station filed a case for the killing of SI Motiur Rahman, Inspector Abdul Kuddus filed another case for attack on police at Chhanbari. SI Ataur Rahman filed the third case for setting fire to Hashara police outpost during Monday’s clashes.
Shajahan Badal, the convener of Arial Beel Rakkha Committee, has been accused in all the three cases.
Police and Rab men started joint drives in different areas Monday night and arrested six people in the following morning, Shafiqul Islam, Munshiganj Superintendent of Police told The Daily Star at 11:30am Tuesday.
Milon Mahmud, commander of Munshiganj Rab camp, said the operation was conducted in Baroikhali, Alampur, Laskarpur and Shologhar area.
In the other case, complainant Abdul Matin alleged Monday’s flare-up was an outcome of Khaleda Zia’s “provocative speech” regarding the proposed Bangbandhu airport at a meeting of Ainjibi Forum in Dhaka on January 29.
thedailystar
Leave a Reply