With Eid-ul-Azha approaching, incidents of cattle theft have sharply increased in the Sreepur and Kapasia upazilas of Gazipur, leaving farmers and cattle rearers in a state of panic.
Over the past week, at least 23 cattle have been reported stolen from these two areas. Almost every night, organized gangs are targeting the homes of farmers and farm owners. In fear of further theft, many are now spending their nights inside cattle sheds.
Despite repeated incidents, affected farmers allege that police have shown little response. Complaints lodged at local police stations have reportedly yielded no arrests or recovery of stolen cattle.
One such theft occurred at around 3:30am on Wednesday, at the home of Yusuf Ali Prodhan in the Hayatkharchala (Sharif Bazar) area of Gosinga union under Sreepur upazila.
A gang of thieves sprayed sedatives on the faces of the caretaker and his wife and made away with five cattle, including a sacrificial bull.
According to local sources, anticipating profit during the Eid season, many farmers and cattle rearers in Sreepur and Kapasia had been raising two to four cattle, with some rearing even more.
However, thefts have now escalated alarmingly, with nightly reports of cattle being stolen from various homes. The police, on the other hand, deny any negligence, claiming regular night patrols are in place.
Speaking over the phone, Yusuf Ali Prodhan said he lives in Dhaka and had employed caretaker Kurban Ali to tend to his cattle. The caretaker and his wife reside in a room adjacent to the cattle shed, while their son Hamidul Islam stays in another house on the property.
Five cattle — two bulls, a cow and two calves — were stolen. Yusuf had bought a bull from the Amraid Bazar in neighbouring Kapasia upazila for Tk1.62 lakh for Qurbani. The total value of the stolen cattle is estimated at Tk6.5 lakh.
Caretaker Kurban Ali recounted the events of the night, saying his wife went outside with a machete after hearing noises. She saw two to three individuals standing nearby, one of whom sprayed sedatives on her face, causing her to lose consciousness.
When Kurban came out shortly after, he too was rendered unconscious in the same way. Their son Hamidul discovered them lying unconscious in the courtyard early in the morning.
On inspecting the cattle shed, he found all five animals missing. The couple were later taken to Sreepur Upazila Health Complex, where they regained consciousness following treatment.
Yusuf Ali further claimed that a similar theft had occurred at his cattle shed about six months ago. Despite filing a complaint, police neither arrested anyone nor recovered the stolen cattle.
He alleged that the lack of enthusiasm from the police is causing continuous losses for farmers and farm owners.
In a separate incident in Lohagach (Sat Rasta and Boheratoli) area of Sreepur municipality early Wednesday morning, seven cattle belonging to three farmers — Asad Mia, Khorshed Mia and Kanchan Mia — were stolen within the span of an hour, between 3am and 4am, spreading fear in the area.
Farmer Khorshed Mia reported that thieves cut the wire fence of his cattle shed and stole a milking cow, a heifer and a calf — together valued at around Tk2.5 lakh.
That same night, thieves stole a pregnant cow and a heifer calf worth approximately Tk2 lakh from the cattle shed of his neighbour Asad Mia.
In the nearby Boheratoli area, Kanchan Mia lost two cattle worth Tk2 lakh after thieves broke the lock on his shed.
Asad Mia said he awoke to the sound of a vehicle at around 3:30am. Rushing to his shed, he found two cattle missing. Though neighbours responded to his cries, they could not catch the fleeing thieves despite hearing the vehicle's engine on the road.
Khorshed Mia and Kanchan Mia said the thefts took place after 3am and were carried out by an organized gang. They believe that if the police were more vigilant, both the stolen cattle and the thieves could be apprehended.
Locals say cattle thefts have increased alarmingly in the area, causing widespread fear among farmers and cattle rearers, many of whom now stay awake at night to guard their sheds.
Sreepur police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Mohammad Abdul Barik said no formal complaints had been filed by any farmer. However, the police are aware of the thefts and have increased night patrols on their own initiative.
"We already have the names and addresses of some suspects. If we can arrest them, we will go to the victims' homes and lodge cases even if they haven’t filed complaints," he added.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, three cows were stolen from the shed of farmer Saiful Islam in Rautkona village of Kapasia upazila. He said he used to sell 15 litres of milk daily from those cows.
On Monday, a bull worth Tk30,000 belonging to Alam Mia of Kapaleshwar village, a cow worth Tk1.5 lakh owned by Nurul Islam, and two cows valued at Tk3 lakh from the shed of Billal Mia were stolen.
On that same night, two cows were stolen from the shed of Abul Kashem Sikder of Bamonkhola village. Two more cattle were stolen from Salim Uddin’s shed in neighbouring Nabipur village.
On Tuesday, a cow worth Tk2 lakh was stolen from the shed of farmer Mono Mia in Kandania village.
Billal Mia and Nurul Islam said all the thefts occurred between 2am and 5am. They did not file any cases regarding the incidents.
Shakil Hasan Morol, a cattle farmer from Pabur village in the upazila, said cattle thefts have surged with Eid approaching. "I spent the night in fear with cattle worth Tk10 lakh at my farm," he said.
Kapasia police station OC Zainal Abedin Mondol said he had not received any reports about the incidents but would investigate the matter seriously.
He added: “Recently, five cattle thieves were caught red-handed by locals during a daytime theft attempt and had been sent to jail through the court following legal proceedings.”
