LATEST
Sylhet set to become country’s first plastic pollution-free city 6 Teams 6 Coaches finalised US exits Iraq after 20 years, opening for Iran BD jute sector targets $1b exports, 1 lakh new jobs by 2030 US firms show interest in $1bn AI, chip investment RTI body paralysed for 3 years:TIB Dissenting reform issues open to talks US eases pharma tariffs for BD Ecnec clears Tk 1,276cr WB-funded project to overhaul banking sector PM briefs President on US visit
Skip to content

Thursday | October 01, 2026 | Dhaka

Mirpur hawkers clash with police

DNCC calls incident planned Journalists assaulted
 Staff Reporter
 Published: 12:01 AM, 01 October 2026

A Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) eviction drive against pavement stalls at Mirpur-10 triggered clashes between hawkers and police on Wednesday, with vehicles vandalised and set on fire and several journalists reportedly assaulted.

The trouble began at around 9:30am when a DNCC mobile court, accompanied by police, launched a drive to clear illegally occupied pavements in the Hope Market area.

Md Shahidul Islam, duty officer at Mirpur Model Police Station, confirmed the clashes.

According to eyewitnesses and police sources, hawkers resisted the eviction drive and threw bricks and stones at police personnel. In the ensuing violence around the Mirpur-10 roundabout, three DNCC rubbish lorries were set on fire, while an excavator and a police vehicle were vandalised. Further incidents of arson were also reported.

Police subsequently barricaded the road from the Mirpur-10 roundabout towards Mirpur-14 to prevent the situation from escalating, bringing traffic to a halt and causing severe congestion and inconvenience to pedestrians.

Additional police personnel were deployed to the area as authorities moved to restore order. Police Headquarters said law enforcement agencies were prepared to deal with any further untoward incidents.
The area remained tense into the afternoon.

Visiting the Hope Market area at around 1pm, DNCC Administrator Shafiqul Islam Khan Milton told journalists that the violence had been premeditated.

“They did this in a planned way today; they had prepared in advance. The collaborators of fascism did this,” he said.

The administrator also claimed that anti-government slogans had been chanted during the clashes.
“They were chanting slogans against the government. Who chants slogans against the government? Those who are collaborators of fascism,” he said.

The remarks were made as authorities assessed the damage caused during the eviction operation.

Journalists covering the clashes also came under attack, according to reports from the scene.

Several media workers were allegedly assaulted by hawkers, while a television cameraman reportedly sustained a head injury.

Journalists present at the scene urged their colleagues to exercise caution while reporting from the area amid the continuing tension.

The eviction drive was conducted by the DNCC mobile court with police support as part of efforts to clear pavements of unauthorised stalls.

At around 11:45am, a group of hawkers gathered in front of Ideal College in Mirpur, while police took positions around the Mirpur-10 roundabout.

Police said the confrontation began after hawkers resisted the eviction operation. Authorities were continuing efforts to restore normal traffic and public order in the area.