At least 30 leaders and activists of BNP involved in the mayhem which occurred in the Naya Paltan area of Dhaka on Wednesday have already been identified, police said on Thursday.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Asaduzzaman Mia revealed the figure while briefing reporters in his office at DMP headquarters in the capital.
"We've already identified 30 people after scrutinising photographs and video footage of both print and electronic media and the process is underway to identify the rest," he said.
Police arrested 68 people on the day and three cases were filed with Paltan Police Station over the clash between police and BNP members in front of BNP central office in the area.
The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) court granted remand for 38 of the arrestees and sent the rest to jail pending further investigations.
Who were accused?
Police said a total of 488 BNP men were accused in the three cases, along with several others anonymous. BNP leader Mirza Abbas was made the prime accused.
Of the three cases filed, 192 people were named in one case, 159 in another case and 137 in the third.
“The person who set fire to the vehicle has been identified as Shahjalal Khandaker, a member of the convening committee of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD), Paltan unit,” Asaduzzaman said.
“The other one who was seen hopping on the vehicle has been identified as Shohag Bhuiyan, a JCD activist.
“The identity of other arrested persons has not been disclosed for further enquiry. We have clear evidence against everyone; no one will be spared.”
How the clash began
Before Wednesday descended into chaos, a number of processions led by Mirza Abbas, his wife Afroza Abbas, Kafil Uddin owner of Hanif Paribahan, Kishoreganj MP-candidate Major Akhteruzzaman and Nabiullah from Wari division were brought out. Around 30,000 people were gathered in front of the BNP office.
Police chief Asaduzzaman claimed the first attack on officers came from Mirza Abbas’s procession, with 23 policemen including five officers injured.
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“We have seen them attacking our force members with bamboo sticks and hurling brick chips indiscriminately,” he said.
“Our detectives and Motijheel’s crime teams are working on to find out the culprits.”
Asaduzzaman said the electoral code of conduct does not permit processions and so police had requested them not to move with showdowns.
“Motijheel is a busy business hub; roads should not be blocked there,” he said. “But a central leader of BNP came out with a procession despite police request. At one point, they attacked police without any instigation.
“They were seen carrying large sticks. How did they get that there? They brought those from inside of the BNP office.”
The DMP chief said the offenders attacked officers and did not even allow firefighters to douse the flames engulfing police cars.
“In primary investigation and analysing the situation and the manner of attack, we were confident that the whole incident was pre-planned,” he said.
“The attack was staged just to make an issue. They thought that it would destroy the environment of holding the national polls and create an unstable situation. We have evidence of that.”
Who is BNP blaming?
BNP has alleged that police attacked its leaders and activists in front of the party headquarters “without any provocation - at the behest of the government.”
"Police, without provocation, opened fire on our brothers,” BNP’s Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said.
“They lobbed teargas, charged batons and attacked the peaceful gathering of our leaders and activists creating chaos."
The party’s secretary general, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, also blamed police for the clash.
“It will only hamper the election atmosphere,” he said.