The third day of the ongoing nationwide hartal, enforced by BNP-led 20-party alliance, went relatively peacefully in the capital without any reports of major incidents.
In the capital, traffic movement was as usual; the number of vehicles on the streets increased as the day progressed. Shops, businesses and offices ran as usual too.
Launches and trains left their stations as per schedule, but only a small number of long-haul buses left the city for different parts of the country.
In the morning, a passenger suffered splinter injuries as miscreants hurled a crude bomb at a bus in Mohammadpur area around 5:30am. The victim, Aminul Islam, who came to Dhaka from Gaibandha, received treatment at Dhaka Medical College Hospital, said Mozammel Haque, in-charge of DMCH police outpost.
Later in the afternoon, the Detective Branch of police detained a young man named Poran, 24, for hurling a stone at BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s Gulshan office. Police picked him up from outside the building’s main entrance around 1:30pm.
Talking to reporters, Poran said: “My brother was killed in a petrol bomb attack on a bus. I came to show my anger towards her (Khaleda) who has enforced the blockade.”
Gulshan police station OC Rafiqul Islam said Poran had been taken to the DB office for interrogation.
In Chittagong, Bakalia police arrested Jubo Dal leader Idris Alam, 38, at Rajakhali area in the city early yesterday, on charge of being involved with some recent arson attacks.
In another incident, an angry mob caught a youth named Rubel red-handed while blasting several crude bombs at the Customs intersection area in front of Bandar Bhaban around 11am and gave him a good beating, said Zahidul Islam, OC at Bandar police station.
On information, police arrested rescued the youth from the crowd and arrested him.
In Dinajpur, police arrested BNP activists Mostakim Sarkar, 25, and Sahinur, 35, in Ranibandar area on charge of being involved in arson attacks. Police also seized four crude bombs from their possession.
In Gaibandha, pickets hurled petrol bombs at two Rangpur-bound trucks on Dhaka-Rangpur highway near Dhaperhat Chandipur area in Sadullapur upazila around 7am. One of the trucks was entirely destroyed by fire, while the driver’s cabin in the other one was damaged. No one was injured.
Sub-inspector Jalal Uddin of Dhaperhat police station said one truck was carrying fertiliser, and the other one steel sheets. As the pickets hurled the bombs, the drivers and their helpers quickly got off the trucks to save themselves.
In Jhalakathi, pro-hartal activists torched the car of Younus Laskar, chairman of Nalchity upazila parishad early yesterday. The car was parked inside the garage of the upazila parishad office, sources said. Police arrested two Jubo Dal activists in this connection.
In Madaripur, police recovered remains of two petrol bombs on Dhaka-Khulna highway near Kaorakandi ferry terminal in Shibchar upazila yesterday morning. Locals said pickets had hurled those bombs at two trucks earlier in the morning, but they missed target. Madaripur police have announced a bounty of Tk50,000 for the attackers.
In Rajshahi, Islami Chhatra Shibir called a two-day strike at Rajshahi University from today protesting the death of a Shibir leader in a “shootout” with law enforcers.
The leader, Sahabuddin Ripon who was Shibir’s information and technology affairs secretary in the university, was killed in an “encounter” with police on Friday.
