One person was injured while seven arrested after a shooting took place during a meeting of BNP’s Dhaka City unit at Bhashani Auditorium in the party office in the capital last night.
According to witnesses, the meeting was on the formation of BNP’s committee for Dhaka Ward 15 (Cantonment area), where all of a sudden a BNP activist voiced his resentment over the party’s performance in the resistance movement against the January 5 election and criticised the party’s senior leaders.
Aggrieved by the activist’s vocal complaint, Mohammad Rashid, BNP leader in Cantonment area, attacked him. A clash broke out between two factions – one led by Rashid, and the other led by Liakat Hossain, general secretary of BNP’s Cantonment wing.
The dispute elevated quickly, leading to a shooting where five rounds of bullets were fired and one was shot.
The witnesses could not confirm who had fired the gunshots, nor could they say who had been hurt and whether he or she had been taken to hospital.
On information, police rushed to the spot and arrested seven persons, one of them named Nurunnabi.
Sources said the Social Welfare Member of BNP’s Executive Committee Abul Khayer Bhuyan was in charge of forming the Cantonment committee, but he did not attend the meeting due to illness.
In his absence, Khilgaon BNP President Yunus Mridha and former student leader ASM Jilani took charge of the meeting.
Addressing journalists after the incident, Yunus Mridha said: “Some miscreants of the Awami League caused this incident. Tough action will be taken against those who were involved.”