Several thousand people of Atia, Kartetail, Khilpara and Gagra villages in Narsingdi’s Polash upazila brought out processions tuesday demanding arrest of wanted criminal Masud Rana and his gang members.
Over 5,000 demonstrators later gathered for a rally on the grounds of the Atia mosque.
Talking to members of the Narsingdi Press Club who visited the area tuesday, many affected villagers said several cases were filed with police stations at Polash and Narsingdi Sadar against Rana and his associates. The charges against them included extortion, robbery, arms possession, rape and harassment.
The victims also submitted petitions to the superintendent of police in Narsingdi demanding punishment of the culprits.
Narsingdi SP Khandaker Muhid Uddin said he had ordered Polash police to arrest Rana immediately.
Shahdat Hossain, officer-in-charge of Polash police station, said Rana was a wanted criminal, and he was accused in more than a dozen cases filed over the past one year.
“But whenever we raided his known hangouts, he managed to flee,” Shahdat said.
However, local people claimed that the law enforcers were not apprehending Rana as he reportedly enjoyed the patronage of local ruling party activists and police protection.
They alleged that Rana, who comes from Kartetail village, was sheltered by Polash Jubo League president Javed Mia. But Javed denied the allegation, saying Rana was a follower of Iqbal, former vice president of the Awami League’s youth wing. Iqbal could not be reached for comment.
Over 20,000 people of Atia, Kartetail, Khilpara and Gagra villages have become victims of rampant extortion, robbery, snatching, land-grabbing and assault by members of Rana’s gang, known as “Rana Bahini”. Residents in these areas were patrolling their homes at night, fearing attacks by the Rana Bahini, while around 5,000 villagers have sought shelter in Polash, Narsingdi and Dhaka to escape the gang’s wrath. The local people also complained that instead of taking any action against the criminals, police advised them to settle their “problems” with Rana and his gang amicably.
Mintu Mia of Atia said Rana and his men attacked his house after he refused to pay them protection money. “They demanded Tk50,000, But when I refused to pay up, they entered my home, damaged furniture and looted cash and gold worth about Tk200,000 on August 5,” he said.
Abdur Razzak, imam of a local mosque, told the journalists that Rana and his men had allegedly raped about 50 women and young girls.
The imam said many parents had sent away their young daughters to relatives’ homes in other places for their safety.
Several villagers also said female workers at the factory of Pran Foods were victims of assaults and rapes by Rana and his men.
