700 detained over Saturday’s violence: Home Minister

Staff Reporter  :
The sit-in programmes of the opposition BNP at the four entry points of Dhaka on Saturday ended in violent clashes with police, alongside incidents of vandalism and arson attacks on vehicles.

Police have filed 11 cases accusing about 500 BNP men while Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal on Sunday said about 700 people were arrested so far over the Saturday’s violence and arson attack.

It was found early in the morning on Saturday, BNP leaders and activists began gathering at various points of Dhaka, with clashes breaking out at Jatrabari, Gabtoli and Dholaikhal areas of the city.

BNP Dhaka Metropolitan North Convener Amanullah Aman and 30 other BNP men were detained from Gabtoli by the police, after they clashed.

Elsewhere, another 7-8 BNP men, including the party’s Standing Committee Member Gayeshwar Chandra Roy who was injured during a police attack, were detained and later released.

Incidents of arson began to trickle in around the city during the programme.

Five buses were set on fire at Matuail, Shyamoli and Savar by unidentified people on Saturday amid huge police presence during sits-ins of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and other opposition parties.

Witnesses said that the Ruling Awami League brought out processions before and after arson attacks on buses at Matuail.

According to Fire Service headquarters control room, three buses were set on fire at Matuail and one at Savar while the police said fire was set to another bus at Shyamoli.

A bus of Tisha Coach was set on fire in front of Shanto Filling Station at Matuail at about 1:45pm amid huge police presence.

Local people said that Awami League activists staged a showdown there few minutes before the arson.

The bus driver Sanaullah said that the bus was in queue in front a filling station to refuelling after dropping passengers at Gulishtan in the capital coming from Bajitpur of Kishorganj.
“Suddenly three youths on a motorcycle approached me. They asked me to leave the bus and threatened to set fire to bus along with me,” Sanaullah said.

Sanaullah jumped out of the bus and then the arsonists set on fire to the bus pouring petrol, he said.

Local people said that there were clashes between police and BNP activists about an hour before the arson.

Earlier at about noon, another bus of Sawdesh Paribahan was set on fire at Matuail Maternity crossing.

The bus driver Imran Hossain said that police stopped his bus on its way to Gulistan and asked to turn back.

The passengers were getting off after the driver took a U-turn and then few youths in helmets set the bus on fire.

Another bus of Turag Paribahan was also set on fire at Matuail about an hour later.

Dhaka Metropolitan Police deputy commissioner for Wari division Ziaul Ahsan Talukder said that about eight buses came under attack on Dhaka-Chattogram Highway causing traffic disruption on the highway.

At Shyamoli, two police cars were vandalised and a bus was set on fire Saturday afternoon.

Rubaiyat Zaman, additional deputy commissioner of DMP Tejgaon zone, said that two police cars were vandalised from a sudden procession of BNP while a bus of Welcome Paribahan was set on fire.

He said that some of police members were injured and police detained several people.

Their identities are being scrutinized, ADC Zaman said. He said that about 300 BNP leaders and activists brought out a procession and they vandalised and set fire to several vehicles.

Meanwhile, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Saturday alleged that members of different intelligence agencies and ruling party cadres torched vehicles in the capital as part of a plot of the government to falsely blame the opposition.

Speaking at a press conference at the BNP Chairperson’s Gulshan office after a virtual meeting of the BNP standing committee members, he said it.

“We have come to know that evil attempts are being made to blame BNP for the incidents of torching and vandalising vehicles at Matuail and Shyamoli.

The members of the government agencies and even cadres of the Awami League have carried out these incidents in a planned way with the help of police and recorded videos before fleeing on motorcycles,” he said.