Police have detained several people from different areas of Savar and Ashulia over allegations of vandalism, attacks on garment factories and attempts to create unrest amid ongoing workers’ protests, Dhaka District Police Superintendent Shamima Pervin said on Monday.
However, she could not immediately confirm the number of people detained, saying arrests had been made separately by industrial police and police from Ashulia and Savar police stations.
Speaking to journalists in front of a factory in Jamgora on the Ashulia-Baipail road in the afternoon, Shamima said those accused of trying to vandalise vehicles, attack garment factories, injure workers and hurl brickbats had been detained.
She said police teams were still conducting operations and that the total number of arrests would be confirmed after information from different units was compiled in the evening.
Dhaka Range Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Md Mostafizur Rahman, who was also present during the visit, said the police would take strict legal action against those creating instability in the industrial belt and those backing them.
He said the government had formed a wage board for garment workers on Sunday and that it had already started its work to address wage-related concerns through the legal process.
“Those who are creating instability despite the formation of the wage board are not, in our view, part of the workers’ movement. They are people creating disorder in society, and strict legal action will be taken against them,” he said.
The DIG urged workers to return to their jobs without fear and called on factory owners to resume normal operations, assuring them that police would ensure security at factories.
He said police were collecting information about those allegedly instigating the unrest from behind the scenes, adding that no one would be allowed to act outside the law. Those involved in vandalism and arson at factories and other locations were being identified, and cases and arrests were underway, he added.
Addressing rumours that a worker had been killed by police gunfire, Mostafizur said no such incident had occurred and accused a group of spreading misinformation on social media to destabilise the country and mislead workers.
He urged journalists to report verified information, saying false claims could create confusion among workers and the public. He also warned that legal action would be taken against anyone spreading misleading information or inciting unrest, including labour leaders or others providing financial support.
The DIG said police had been monitoring several social media groups for the past four days, alleging that they were circulating provocative messages announcing demonstrations at specific locations for the following day.
He also expressed concern over the safety of students during the unrest, saying a student was injured by bricks thrown by protesters while trying to flee near a school at the Bangladesh Krira Shikkha Protishthan (BKSP) on Monday.
Mostafizur said a large number of police personnel had been deployed across the industrial belt, including uniformed and plainclothes officers, members of the Armed Police Battalion (APBn) and the RRF.
He said workers in some factories had initially entered their workplaces before gradually stopping work. After general leave was declared at the factories, they took to the streets to protest.