Police sued over 7,000 activists of the BNP-led 18-party alliance in Chittagong, Chandpur, Laxmipur and Noakhali districts on charges of vandalism, arson, blasts and attacks on policemen on Friday.
Eight people have been arrested in Chandpur’s Faridganj and 12 in Cox’s Bazar’s Chakuria.
In Chittagong, a total of five cases were lodged – four with Kotwali, Khulshi, Bandar and Chandgaon police stations and one with the district’s Sitakunda police station.
Assistant Sub-Inspector Kamal Hossain of Sitakunda police station lodged a case on Friday night accusing 28 named and 300-400 unnamed individuals on charges of attack on police in Barabkunda area that left seven including five policemen injured, said constable Nur-e-Alam, telephone operator of the station.
Officer-in-Charge Mainul Islam Bhuiyan of Khulshi police station said ASI Sanjib Dutta filed a case early on Saturday against a number of unidentified people on charges of vandalism and attack on police on Friday near Wasa and Ispahani intersections.
At least two journalists were also assaulted during the incident by the opposition supporters when they had been returning from a rally held in Kazir Dewri area in the city.
Another case was lodged against 300-400 unidentified people by SI Mohammad Ershad of Chandgaon police station regarding the Bahaddarhat incident where crude bombs were blasted and police were attacked by the 18-party men. The incident took place after the police had tried to disperse the activists of Awami League and BNP who locked in a chase and counter-chase, said police.
SI Taj Uddin of Bandar police station lodged another case accusing 70-80 unidentified individuals of attacking the police in the city’s Fakirhat area.
Around 5:30pm on Saturday, an opposition procession brought out in support of the countrywide 60-hour hartal starting from on Sunday was intercepted and dispersed by the police in Mirsharai upazila.
In Cox’s Bazar, a ban on gathering (section 144) declared on Friday was still in force in the district’s Chakuria upazila.
Police arrested 12 individuals for defying the ban on Friday and conducting acts of vandalism and arson in the area.
In Chandpur, a total of three cases were filed against 88 named and 2,500 unnamed BNP-Jamaat activists with Faridganj police station regarding Friday’s violence.
Meanwhile, a three-member probe committee was also formed to investigate the deaths of three BNP supporters allegedly by police firing during Friday’s violence. Assistant Superintendent of Police Kamrul Islam will head committee and it will have to submit a report within five days.
On the other hand, upazila BNP leaders observed a dawn-to-dusk hartal protesting the killings.
A namaz-e-janaja was held on Friday evening for the deceased – local BNP leaders Jahangir Hossain, Arif Hossain and Md Babul Bhuiyan amid heightened security of BGB, Rab and police. A second namaz-e-janaja was held for each of them at their respective homes before they were buried.
In Laxmipur, a case was lodged against more than 500 activists of Jamaat-Shibir and BNP for attack on the police in Ramganj upazila and vandalising Muktijoddha Sangsad, Zia Auditorium and other establishments.
In Noakhali, police filed three separate cases against 175 named and 3,000 unnamed BNP, Jamaat-Shibir and 18-party alliance activists under the Speedy Trial Act centring Friday’s violence in Maijdee town when several business establishments were torched and police were attacked.
In protest against the violence, traders of the area on Saturday kept their shops shut and put barricades on the main road with the leftovers for an hour from around 11:30am.
On the other hand, the district unit Awami League-led 14-party alliance on Saturday blamed the BNP-Jamaat activists for setting the unit office on fire during Friday’s violence.
District unit acting president Prof Kharul Anam Selim claimed that the miscreants had looted the businesses in the name of holding a rally.