A shopping mall in Uttara was vandalized late Sunday night after rumours spread that a rickshaw puller had been beaten to death.
Police have filed a case over the incident and detained five people. Around 200 officers have been deployed to keep the situation under control.
Officer-in-charge Kazi Md Rafik Ahmed of Uttara West Police Station confirmed the development to Dhaka Tribune on Monday afternoon.
He said those detained are being interrogated, and additional police officers have been deployed to the area to maintain order.
According to police, the incident occurred around 11pm on Sunday. Members of the Bangladesh Army also assisted the police in bringing the situation under control, which was restored around 3am.
Three police officers were injured during the clashes and received primary treatment.
Police said they have not found any confirmed evidence that a rickshaw puller was killed and suspect the unrest may have been triggered by a rumour.
The incident took place in front of Square Shopping Mall on Sonargaon Janapath Road in Sector 13 around 11pm on Sunday.
Tension persisted in the area on Monday morning as groups of rickshaw pullers attempted to gather there while police tried to prevent further unrest.
What happened
OC Rafik Ahmed said the incident began after an argument broke out between the shopping mall’s security guards and rickshaw pullers over rickshaws being parked in front of the mall.
The dispute escalated, and rumours spread that security guards had detained a rickshaw puller inside the mall and beaten him to death. However, no one could confirm the identity of such a victim.
Following the rumour, hundreds of rickshaw pullers gathered outside the mall and began throwing bricks and stones. They also carried out vandalism using sticks and set fires on Sonargaon Janapath Road in front of the shopping complex.
Police made several attempts to control the situation before additional law enforcement agencies joined to help restore order.