Several government and private institutions in Barguna, including educational establishments, upazila parishad, municipal and union parishad offices, were locked overnight, while a truck was set on fire and attempts were made to torch a bus.
Activists of the Chhatra League have been blamed for the incidents, which took place in Barguna Sadar, Betagi, Patharghata and Bamna from Monday night.
Local sources said locks were put on Barguna Zilla School, Government Girls’ High School and several other educational institutions. The Betagi Upazila Parishad building was locked around 1am on Tuesday.
Around the same time, a municipal truck was set on fire in front of the Betagi Municipality Office. An attempt was also made to set fire to a bus parked at Betagi bus stand.
Several schools and colleges in Betagi, including Bibichini School and College, Putiakhali Adarsha Secondary School, Hossanabad Adarsha Secondary School, Mokamia Secondary School, Kaunia Emdadia Secondary School and Zamir Uddin Secondary School, were also locked. The Hossanabad and Mokamia union parishad offices were similarly locked.
Posters bearing the name of Betagi Upazila Chhatra League General Secretary Sifat Sikder were found at the institutions.
In another incident, tree trunks were placed across the Barguna-Barisal regional highway at the Chandkhali bypass, obstructing traffic. Barguna Government College in Patharghata and Ramna Sher-e-Bangla Adarsha Secondary School in Bamna were also locked.
Barguna Additional Superintendent of Police (Administration and Finance) Mukit Hasan Khan said police had visited the affected locations and educational institutions.
“All the locks have been removed, and the situation is now normal,” he said, adding that several activists of Chhatra League had been arrested.
Police are conducting operations to identify and arrest others involved in the acts of sabotage and disorder, he added.