Staff Reporter :
A total of 13 cases have now been filed against more than 5,500 people in connection with the violent attack on a recent National Citizen Party (NCP) rally in Gopalganj.
The latest case, which includes charges under the Anti-Terrorism Act, was filed by Gopalganj Sadar Police Station Inspector Motiar Rahman on Tuesday.
According to Gopalganj Sadar Police Station Officer-in-Charge Mir Mohammad Sajedur Rahman, 447 of the accused have been identified as activists of the Awami League and its affiliated organisations, while the remaining suspects have not yet been named.
Several senior Awami League leaders and prominent local figures have been named among the accused.
They include Gopalganj District Awami League President Mahabub Ali Khan, vice-president and former municipal mayor Sheikh Rakib Hossain, Sadar upazila Awami League president and former mayor Kazi Liaquat Ali Leku, Gopalganj Town Awami League President Golam Kabir, General Secretary Alimuzzaman, Joint General Secretary Ali Naeem Khan Jimmy, acting president of the District Jubo League MM Masud Rana, and former Sadar upazila Vice Chairman Nitish Roy.
According to the first information report (FIR), on July 16, leaders and activists of the Awami League and its affiliated bodies currently banned allegedly attacked the stage prepared for the NCP rally at Gopalganj Municipal Park.
The attackers reportedly spread panic and severely disrupted public order.
They are facing serious charges, including engaging in anti-state and anti-government terrorist activities, obstructing government work, assaulting public servants, hurling improvised explosives with intent to kill, and injuring members of the joint security forces.
The new filing brings the total number of cases linked to the Gopalganj unrest to 13.
These cases relate to the attack on the NCP rally, vandalism at the district jail and other sites, assaults on police, arson and damage to vehicles, anti-state activities, and incidents of murder.
The cases have been registered with several police stations, including Sadar, Kashiani, Tungipara, and Kotalipara.
So far, 1,134 Awami League-affiliated individuals have been named in the cases, while another 14,450 suspects remain unidentified.
As of Tuesday evening, police had arrested 327 people in connection with the incidents.
