Two leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami and its student front Islami Chhatra Shibir were killed in police firing during a clash with police at Paokhali under Kaliganj upazila in Satkhira during the dawn-to-dusk hartal on Tuesday, reports UNB.
The deceased were identified as Jamaat leader Ruhul Amin, 38, of Ratanpur village of the upazila, and Shibir leader Arif Billah, 17, son of Aftab Uddin of the upazila headquarters.
Meanwhile, some 50 people, including nine policemen, were also injured in the clash.
Assistant Superintendent of Police Laskar Tajul Islam said hundreds of Jamaat-Shibir men were picketing on a road in Paokhali area of the upazila by placing logs at about 8am.
When police were trying to remove the logs from the road, the Jamaat-Shibir activists attacked them.
At one stage, police fired 12 shots to disperse the Jamaat-Shibir men who in retaliation fired back several rounds of bullet on police, which left a police constable named Farid injured in the head, said Laskar Tajul Islam.
As the situation went out of control of police, law enforcers fired 13 more rounds of bullets, leaving several Jamaat-Shibir men injured.
In a counterattack, Jamaat-Shibir activists also fired 50 rounds of bullet targeting police, leaving eight policemen injured, also said Laskar.
Kaliganj upazila Shibir unit General Secretary Rukunuzzaman claimed that Jamaat leader Ruhul Amin and Shibir leader Arif Billah were killed on the spot in police firing.
At least 40 Jamaat-Shibir activists were also injured at that time.
Five critically injured were admitted to local hospital, he said.
The Islamist party enforced the dawn-to-dusk shutdown protesting what it said was government-sponsored killing, terrorism, mass arrest and mass repression as well as demanding immediate release of its former Ameer Ghulam Azam.