United News of Bangladesh

Two people from Kushtia’s Kumarkhali upazila were killed when a building they used to work at was torched during the quota reform movement in Chittagong Road area of Narayanganj last Saturday. The deceased, Abdus Salam (24), was working at a branch of Dutch-Bangla Bank on the second floor of a ten-story building in the city. The fire reportedly broke out during the quota reform movement protests on Saturday afternoon, resulting in extensive smoke inhalation that proved fatal for those trapped inside. The body of Abdus Salam was brought to his ancestral home in Kumarakhali upazila’s Char Bhabanipur village on Tuesday. Surviving family members include his widow, Maria Khatun (20), their only child, Mahim, and his mother Buljan Khatun and elder brother, Alamin (25), a third-year student at Rajbari Government College. The family has appealed for justice in the case, demanding a fair trial for those responsible for the incident.   Salam's mother, Buljan Khatun, said “My son is no more. Now, I have to run the household with the meager savings and the support of my eldest son.” Salam’s only child Mahim, aged around 1.5 years old, still doesn’t know his father is no more. His wife, Maria, has become ill from the news. His brother Brother Alamin said, "On Saturday afternoon, Salam suddenly called me and told me that the building he worked at was on fire. He said nothing can be seen in the smoke.” “My brother told me, ‘you take care of my wife, child and mother.’ Then the phone went off. Despite many efforts, I could not find him. Later last Sunday it was known that the brother is no more,” he said. He also said that his younger brother's money used to cover all the expenses of their family including his studies. “I don't know what to do now. I demand justice and compensation.” The incident also claimed the life of Selim Mondal (28). Shova Khatun, his wife, said that the last conversation they had was over the phone on Saturday afternoon. “A lot of smoke- he kept saying on the phone. Look after my father, mother and daughter, my husband said.” “Who will take care of us now? Where do I go with our three-year-old daughter Humaira?” She demanded justice and compensation for her husband's death.Md. Faisal Mondal (18), Md. Parvez, Abdul Hamid and Mahbub Biswas, who were also trapped in the fire at the Dutch-Bangla Bank building. Among the injured, Hamid is undergoing treatment in ICU at a hospital in Dhaka, while Faisal, Parvez, and Mahbub are recuperating at home. Faisal described the chaotic scenes during the fire, recalling the helplessness and desperation of those trying to escape. "We heard gunfire outside the building in the afternoon. A student was shot dead by police firing in that area. Later the building was torched. The air was thick with smoke, making it difficult to see," said Faisal Mondal, recounting the ordeal. SM Mikail Islam, upazila nirbahi officer of Kumarkhali upazila said, they have got death news of four people, including a student, hailing from the upazila, during the unrest. He assured the affected families of support, including potential financial assistance upon formal application for government aid.

Experts brought up the question of how 826 prisoners - the entire roster of inmates- could escape after being freed by miscreants from a secured prison like Narsingdi Central Jail, guarded by 101 security personnel. A jailer, a deputy jailer and a jail superintendent were assigned to guard the prison. The government has allotted 85 state-of-the-art weapons for the protection and security of the inmates. And there were 8,150 rounds of ammunition stored in the prison armory for use in any kind of conflict. No prison guard was killed or injured during such violence. How is it possible that the attackers looted the armory and took out 826 prisoners without any hindrance, without bloodshed, from such a fortified prison? Dignitaries in Narsingdi raised the question over the responsibilities of the officials of the prison when miscreants carried out massive vandalism and set fire to the prisons on July 19 (Friday). In this regard, Narsingdi District Bar Association President Kazi Nazmul Islam said that the main gate of the jail is locked from inside. If this lock is not opened, no one can enter without breaking the gate. “I don't know why the main gate and second gate of the jail gate were opened at that time,” he remarked. According to the Jail Code, the Jail authorities can shoot any person who misbehaves within the area of the Jail. But, they didn't fire a shot, unlocked the main gate, thousands of people poured in unhindered, the matter is really mysterious, he added. "The jail also has a rule of ringing the ‘mad bell’ if any inmate tries to rebel, but we didn’t hear any bells," he said. “The incident should be investigated.” “The jail authorities could have sought police cooperation. But I don’t know whether they sought it or not. The police could help if they wanted. If the police had cooperated, this would not have happened," he added. The highest authority could also seek the assistance of the District Magistrate. "But I don't know if he wanted to," Nazmul said. Experts also believe that this incident might have been carried out to snatch the militants imprisoned in the jail.  

Local administration has extended the ban on netting fish on the Kaptai Lake for 15 days more to boost production. Rangamati Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Mosharraf Hossain Khan said a decision will be taken to lift the ban on August 8. Earlier, the local administration imposed a three-month ban on catching all kinds of fish from the lake, aiming to safe breeding of the mother fish. The ban was scheduled to be lifted on July 25. Meanwhile, the local administration decided to extend the ban period for 15 more days as the size of the fry fish remained so small and due to lack of water at the Kaptai Lake, said Mosharraf Hossain. The ban was imposed aiming to ensure natural breeding of the carp like fish, to boost production of it and it will remain in force until further notice. Action will be taken against those who violated the ban, he said.  

An inmate who escaped during the jailbreak at Narsingdi Central Jail, one of 9 members of militant groups said to have escaped, has been arrested by RAB in Narayanganj. The inmate is Md Faruk Ahmed, 43, member of a militant group Ansar Al Islam.   Lt Col Tanvir Mahmud Pasha, commanding officer of RAB-11, said this during a press conference at the RAB headquarters on Thursday. He was arrested from Sonargaon’s  Premer Bazar area on 19th July. Faruk was primarily arrested on March 24, 2022, for involvement in militancy and charged under the Anti-Terrorism act. He later confessed under section 164 of Code of Criminal Procedure. He was housed in cell no. 4 along with three Ansarullah Bangla Team militants: Hizbullah, Abdul Alim, and Moinuddin. After escaping the jail on 19th July, he hid at his sister’s house in Dhaka for two days before moving to a relative’s house in Narayanganj.  

Law enforcing agencies' drives will continue until attackers and saboteurs are identified and none will be spared, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said on Thursday. “No matter who they are, no one will be spared,” he said while talking to reporters after a meeting with the law enforcing agencies and public representatives at Rangpur Shilpakala Auditorium. “A vested quarter carried out the attacks in a planned way but the law enforcing agencies did not allow them to implement their plan. We have to be more cautious,” he said. “Our Prime Minister will take steps against those involved in the violence in Rangpur,” he added. Meanwhile, Deputy Commissioner of Rangpur district Mobassher Hasan went over the overall losses caused during the violence during a presentation. According to the deputy commissioner, valuables worth Tk 10.45 crore were damaged and a total of 182 people were arrested. The home minister also visited the Tajhat Police Station, district and metropolitan Awami League office, Family Planning Department and other areas where the attackers carried out violence.  

Ferry services at Bhola's Ilisha ghat, a ferry terminal, have been hampered for the last three days as both its pontoons and a gangway were submerged by the tidal surge caused by a prevailing depression in the Bay of Bengal, affecting transport workers, truckers, workers and passengers. Hundreds of vehicles cross the river on five ferries on the Bhola-Laxmipur river route every day. There are two separate platforms at Ilisha Ghat on the Bhola-Laxmipur route. One is a low-water ghat and the other is a high-water ghat. The transport workers said the ghat area is submerged in the afternoon triggered by the low over the Bay of Bengal. As a result, they have to suffer a lot to cross the river and sometimes it can take 3-4 hours to board the ferry. A number of vehicles remained stranded on both sides of the river in Bhola and Laxmipur, waiting to cross the river for the past three days. Atikuzzaman, assistant manager of Bhola-Laxmipur ferry route, said the ferry services remained suspended during the tidal surge and the loading and unloading work started during the ebb-tide. Shahidul Islam, an officer of Bhola River port, said the engineers from Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) will visit the spot on Sunday and take necessary steps in this regard.  

Police recovered the bodies of two more people, who went  missing after a boat sank in the Dhaleshwari river, from Kushunda area of Ghior upazila in Manikganj district on Thursday, taking the death toll to three. The deceased were identified as Rafiqul Islam, 35, son of Danej Ali and Russel, 14, son of Selim of Saturia upazila. Sukumar Biswas, officer-in-charge of Ghior police station, said local people spotted the bodies in Char Kushunda area of the river, one kilometer off the spot where the trawler sank, around 1 pm and informed police. Boat sinks in Dhaleshwari River: Death toll reaches 3 with recovery of two bodies Police recovered the bodies and sent those to the local hospital morgue for autopsy. Earlier, on Tuesday, some 50-60 people of Saturia upazila went on a boat journey in the Dhaleshwari River. At 12 pm, the trawler sank in the river after being hit by a bulkhead while it was returning to their home. Five people were injured while two remained missing after the boat capsize. Among the injured, Limon was declared dead when he was taken to the hospital. However, the others managed to swim ashore. Police also seized the bulkhead.

Police recovered the bodies of two more people, who went  missing after a boat sank in the Dhaleshwari river, from Kushunda area of Ghior upazila in Manikganj district on Thursday, taking the death toll to three. The deceased were identified as Rafiqul Islam, 35, son of Danej Ali and Russel, 14, son of Selim of Saturia upazila. Sukumar Biswas, officer-in-charge of Ghior police station, said local people spotted the bodies in Char Kushunda area of the river, one kilometer off the spot where the trawler sank, around 1 pm and informed police. Police recovered the bodies and sent those to the local hospital morgue for autopsy. Earlier, on Tuesday, some 50-60 people of Saturia upazila went on a boat journey in the Dhaleshwari River. At 12 pm, the trawler sank in the river after being hit by a bulkhead while it was returning to their home. Five people were injured while two remained missing after the boat capsize. Among the injured, Limon was declared dead when he was taken to the hospital. However, the others managed to swim ashore. Police also seized the bulkhead.  

Three people died in a head-on collision between two motorcycles in the Charpara area of Jindapur of Nabinagar Upazila of Brahmanbaria at 7:30 pm on Wednesday. Mahabub Alam, officer-in-charge of Nabinagar Police Station confirmed the matter. The deceased were identified as Sabbir (20), son of Selim Mia from Baira village in Muradnagar Upazila, Rabbi (21), son of Hafez Mia from Jindapur village, and Piyas, son of Kadir Member from Malai village in Jindapur Union. According to police and local sources, Sabbir was on his way to Nabinagar on his motorcycle when he collided head-on with Rabbi's motorcycle near the Charpara Bridge. Sabbir died on the spot, while Rabbi and Piyas succumbed to their injuries en route to Cumilla General Hospital, added the OC.

Though quota protests failed to have any negative impact in Kurigram, residents of this region were hard hit by the ongoing nationwide curfew. Especially the working class people who live from hand to mouth are in great trouble. Visiting during the relaxation of the curfew of Kurigram Adarsha ​​Municipal Market, there were no buyers despite the shops being opened in the hope of sales. “As the day laborers have no work, they cannot buy daily essentials even if the prices of commodities including rice are brought down.” Wadud Mondal, president of Kurigram Adarsha ​​ Municipal Market Samiti, said there is no shortage of food products in the municipal market for the people. But due to the crisis of buyers, traders are suffering severely. "The raw materials as well as the fruits are rotten. If this continues, traders will suffer a lot." He urged Kurigram District Administration to bring Kurigram back to normal. Raja, president of Rickshaw Van Workers Union, said the number of rickshaw van workers in the district is about 15,000. “Due to the limited movement of people, the income of the workers has decreased drastically,” he added. Kurigram Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Abdul Aziz Mia said that Kurigram is a quiet district by nature. There is no political violence here. The member traders of the organization are suffering severely due to the shortage of buyers. “I will soon discuss with the administration to keep Kurigram normal.” Mohammad Saidul Arif, deputy commissioner of Kurigram, said that due to the very active role of the administration and law enforcement forces, no untoward incident happened anywhere in Kurigram. “As the day laborers are suffering from food shortage, the government will help them to cope up with this problem,” added the Deputy Commissioner.