People above suspicion of political inclination, mostly day labourers and children, are facing the heat of hartal violence as they are losing lives or limbs on almost every shutdown day.
Like the previous ones, the 60-hour hartal enforced by the BNP-led 18-party alliance on Monday claimed the life of one private firm official while two children, one woman and two others suffered burn injuries. They are undergoing treatment at the burn and plastic surgery unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH).
Visiting the hospital, the Dhaka Tribune found that the ground floor of the unit was full of relatives of Mostafizur Rahman Mukul, 38, a purchase officer of Biswas Group. He was killed from 60% burns injury around 10am.
Dr Partha Sharothi Das, a physician at the burn and plastic surgery department, told the Dhaka Tribune that condition of the patients were not much good but they were doing their level best.
Mukul along with his colleague Hasu Mia, 34 was returning to Nabinagar of Savar on Sunday night on a CNG auto-rickshaw as there were no public transports ahead of the hartal. When they reached near the Abdur Rab Gate of Savar Cantonment, some youths ran towards them and hurled seven hand bombs targeting the auto-rickshaw which caught fire eventually. To get relief from the burn injury, Mukul tried to jump into a drain beside the road but as he failed to dive properly, he fell on a concrete slab and went unconscious.
Hasu, a technician at the group, and driver Asadul Gazi, 40, also received burn injuries. Locals rescued them and sent to Savar Gono Swasthya complex around 10:45 pm. Later, they were transferred to DMCH.
Bina Sultana, wife of Mukul, learning about the incident rushed to the hospital from Savar. With tear in her eyes, she wondered how to live with their two children – Mahi, 7, and Mousumi, 3.
She said: “They [hartal supporters] killed my husband for nothing and when he was only two minutes away from our residence. Who will take care about us?”
Hasu is admitted at the hospital with 10% burn injury while the driver 60%.
Like Mukul, Rahima Begum, 45, and her granddaughter Sumi Akter, 9, faced burn injuries from attack of the hartal supporters on Sunday night. They were coming to Uttara from their residence at Gondarbeg of Durgapur in Netrokona. When they reached near Gazipur intersection, some youths came and stopped their bus by putting a barricade.
As the passengers started getting off the bus, the victims failed as they were seated in the middle of the bus. Before they came out, the unruly hartal supporters set fire on the bus with petrol which the two could not escape.
Rahima and Sumi are now undergoing treatment at the DMCH with 13% and 15% burn injuries.
Rahima’s daughter Rabeya Begum was seen shedding tears while sitting on her mother’s bed. She could not make any comments but asking why they had been victimised.
In the meantime, 12-year-old class IV student of Borokanchanpur Primary School of Gazipur is being treated at the DMCH with 95% burn injury. He was going back to their home from Dhaka on Monday morning.
He went to sleep on the way back. His father Ramzan Ali, driver of a covered van, left him inside the van to observe the road condition around 10am. Meanwhile, some youths came near the van and set it on fire with gunpowder.
Before Ramzan came near the van and saved his son, the fire caught his son and razed the covered van including his earning of Tk18,000. Assistant Sub-Inspector Jibon of Joydevpur police station took the injured to the DMCH.
Ramzan told the Dhaka Tribune that his son wanted to visit Dhaka and so he had brought him in the capital.
With tears and anger on the face, he asked everyone around to save his son. “He had no faults and did not understand anything about politics.”