NN Online:
Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Sheikh Md Sazzad Ali on Monday has assured protesting battery-operated auto-rickshaw drivers during a meeting that the necessary documents would be prepared and presented to the court in the afternoon. He urged the drivers to remain patient until the matter is heard.
He made this remark during a meeting at the DMP headquarters with representatives of battery-powered rickshaw drivers, owners, garage owners, and the Rickshaw-Van-Easybike Workers’ Union.
The DMP commissioner said, “Just now [at 12:15pm], I received information that the necessary documents regarding your issue are being prepared. The matter will be presented in the Chamber Court this afternoon. Therefore, you will need to wait until then.
“If the verdict comes after 4pm, form a liaison committee and inform us. We will then discuss the matter with you again. At this point, I have nothing more to say. You must wait until the verdict.”
During the meeting, when union leaders raised concerns about extortion involving rickshaws and vans, the DMP chief said, “Form committees in your neighborhoods where my police station’s officer-in-charge (OC) will be present. If any OC raises objections, they will be removed. I am firmly against extortion. If anyone from the police department is involved in such activities, bring it to my attention.
“If the officer-in-charge (OC) of any DMP police station refuses to file a case or delays it in any prosecutable matter, inform me. I will remove that OC from their position.”
Protests were sparked by a High Court order on November 19 to ban battery-operated rickshaws in Dhaka within three days.
The court also issued a rule asking why the authorities’ inaction in enforcing the ban should not be deemed illegal.
Since the order, battery-operated rickshaw drivers have been protesting in various areas of the capital, demanding a suspension of the ruling.
