Arson, blasts mark day-long hartal

FE Report The nationwide dawn-to-dusk hartal (general strike) enforced by the opposition parties Sunday was marked by incidents of arson, vandalism and blasts that seriously disrupted business activities all over the country. Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-led 18-party alliance called the countrywide strike to protest the recent fuel price-hike, saying that it would have a negative impact on economy through fuelling inflation and further raising people's cost of living. The government increased prices of diesel and kerosene by Tk 7.0 per litre and those of petrol and octane by Tk 5.0 per litre with effect from Friday last to cut the growing subsidy on account of petroleum products. Educational institutations, and businesses were shut on the first working day of the week because of the shutdown. Banks and other financial institutions were kept open but had a very poor number of clients during the hartal hours. Pro-strike activists vandalised and torched several vehicles in Mirpur, Gulshan, Shakhari Bazar and Jatrabari of the capital while handmade bombs or cocktails were exploded in Panthopath, Mirpur and Dhaka University areas. Leaders and activists of the opposition parties could not come out to the streets with processions during the shutdown as headquarters of the political parties were cordoned off by the law enforcers since early hours to maintain law and order in the city. However, incidents of chase and counter chase between picketers and law enforcers were reported at various key points like Panthopath, Jatrabari, Mohakhali, Uttara, Old Dhaka and Mirpur. Additional police force and Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) personnel were seen patrolling the city streets and checking every vehicle at a number of check posts. Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) sources said they detained 17 people from various spots in the capital for their alleged links with violent activities. "The hartal was largely peaceful as no major incident of violence was reported in the capital," DMP spokesman and detective branch deputy director Monirul Islam told the FE. The traffic movement on the city streets remained very thin and rickshaw dominated the roads. Almost all the shopping malls and roadside shops remained closed. Banks kept their doors open but received very few clients. "Financial transactions came down by 60 per cent today (Sunday) compared to the normal working days," an officer of Brac Bank's Motijheel Branch said. Activities at Kamalapur Railway Station and Sadarghat Launch Terminal were normal as trains and launches departed Dhaka as per schedule. Normal trading activities were also recorded at the country's two bourses - Dhaka Stock Exchange and Chittagong Stock Exchange. Meanwhile, police filed 11 cases against over 100 people on charge of blasting cocktails and torching vehicles during the pre-strike violence which caused panic among the residents on Saturday. The cases were filed with 10 police stations in the capital, Masudur Rahman, deputy commissioner of the media and community centre of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), said. The cases were filed with Ramna, New Market, Lalbagh, Kotwali, Sabujbagh, Tejgaon Industrial Area, Mirpur, Kafrul, Gulshan and Banani police stations.