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25 vehicles vandalised, one dead as \\\'blockade\\\' continues

FE Report | Tuesday, 3 March 2015



More than 25 vehicles were vandalized and torched on Monday, the 56th day of countrywide indefinite transport blockade and second day of the 72-hour shutdown enforced by the BNP-led 20-party alliance.
A transport worker was killed and about 20 others were injured in those attacks. More than 300 were arrested in police drives and cocktails went off at many places across the country on the day.
The transport worker, Ratan Mia (22), was burnt when two parked buses were torched inside the bus terminal in Jaypurhat district in the early morning of Monday.
He later died at the Joypurhat Sadar Hospital.
The vehicular movement in the city was thin compared to the other hartal days. Police and other law enforcing agencies were vigilant on the streets.
Three passengers of a bus carrying Janata Bank staff were injured as pro-hartal activists hurled a crude bomb on the vehicle at Bhanga Press in the city's Jatrabari area at around 9:30am.
The victims were now undergoing treatment at the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, Inspector Muzammel Haque, the in-charge of the hospital police camp told The Financial Express.
Miscreants set two private cars afire vandalising those in the city's Bijoynagar area at around 4 pm.
Police and witnesses said a group of 10-12 people, three of them wearing masks, exploded 4-5 crude bombs beside the Dutch-Bangla Bank Ltd's Bijoynagar branch.
Unidentified miscreants attacked, vandalised and torched seven private cars in the capital's Hatirjheel area at around 11 am on the day.
However, no casualties were reported in the incidents.
Police allegedly shot two youths in their thighs in Sutrapur Thana in the city after arrest.
The students are: Md Noman, a student of first year of Islamic History and Culture at the Jagannath University, and Jahirul Islam, an 8th semester student of the same department and university.
In a joint press statement, their fathers Abdul Munnaf and Abdul Hamid alleged their sons were returning from the university. The police then picked up them from Kaltabazar and took away to Sutrapur Thana. Later police shot them at the police station.
However, Sutrapur Thana Sub-inspector Abdul Hakim told The Financial Express he never heard of any such news.
In Lakshmipur, two young men received bullet injuries in a 'gunfight' with police in Kamalnager upazila under Lakshmipur on Sunday night.
The injured are Main Uddin, 32, resident of Charkalkini village of Kamalnagar, and Arif Hossain, 24, resident of Char Jangalia village.
Police claimed that Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami activist Main Uddin, and Jatiyatabadi Juba Dal activist Arif Hossain were felling trees to block the road.
Kamalnagar Police assistant sub-inspector Rejaul Karim said they were blocking the road at about 12:45am. They hurled petrol bombs and crude bombs at the patrol police's vehicles.
In a separate incident, miscreants set three vehicles afire, including a truck, a pickup van and a human hauler, on the Lakshmipur-Kamalnagar road in Kamalnagar upazila headquarters of Laxmipur district in the afternoon on the day.
In Feni, pickets torched a passenger bus in Feni but no injury was reported from the arson attack.
In Bogra, two trucks were torched on the Bogra-Naogaon highway in Arulia area around 5:45am.
No injury was reported from the arson attack, reports our Bogra correspondent.
In Joypurhat, a transport worker was burnt when two parked buses were torched inside the bus terminal of the district during the strike hours.
He later died at hospital.
Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Akkelpur Police Station Abul Kalam Azad said the incident took place in the early morning as a group of arsonists set fire to the vehicle that left the bus helper Ratan Mia (22) who was sleeping there.
In Habiganj, at least three people including a woman and her daughter suffered burn injuries as miscreants firebombed a commuter train at Shahjibazar Railway Station in Madhabpur Upazila of the district on Sunday night.
Of the injured, Maya Begum (45), wife of Kesli Miah, and her daughter Amena Begum (22), of Eralia village in Habiganj Sadar upazila, were rushed to Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital.
Another victim Madhab Rodrapaul, 30, of Harashpur village in Madhabpur was sent to Dhaka Medical College Hospital.
In Faridpur, members of the Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) in a drive detained a youth with 25 petrol bombs from the district town in the early morning.
In Rajshahi, hartal supporters torched two buses of 'Hanif Paribahan' by hurling petrol bombs at the Shirail bus terminal of the city around 6am.
In Bogra, hartal supporters vandalised a private car and several CNG-run auto-rickshaws at Mofiz Paglar Mor on the Sherpur Road in the district town around 9am.
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