United News of Bangladesh

Bus services from Nathullabad Bus Terminal in Barishal remained suspended for the second consecutive day on Monday (November 17), leaving thousands of commuters grappling with the crisis. The bus operations on 23 intra-district routes have been halted since Saturday night (November 15) after students of BM College allegedly vandalised over 150 buses following a clash with the transport works over half fare. According to bus owners, not a single vehicle was left in operable condition, making it impossible to resume operations. “Almost all our buses were damaged. We have asked the college authorities for compensation. Only after receiving it, we can repair the vehicles and return them to the road,” said Mosharraf Hossain, president of Barishal District Bus Owners’ Group. The deadlock began on Saturday night when a dispute broke out over a bus refusing to offer a student half fare. Several hundred BM College students allegedly stormed the terminal and smashed buses, the terminal building and ticket counters. Bus services cut off in Barishal after clash, 150 vehicles vandalised Since the suspension began on Sunday morning, passengers have suffered severe disruption. During a visit to the terminal on Monday, many were seen returning home in frustration, while others attempted to reach their destinations using three-wheelers or motorbikes. However, long-distance routes, including Barishal–Dhaka services, continue to operate normally.

Bus services between Barishal and the rest of the country have remained suspended since Sunday morning (November 16) following a violent clash between transport workers and students over bus fare at Nathullabad Central Bus Terminal on Saturday (November 15). Students allegedly vandalised more than a hundred buses during the incident. Although no formal strike or work stoppage has been announced, transport owners and workers in Barishal have halted operations on all routes. Operators in Dhaka and other districts have also suspended services on Barishal-bound and other southern routes, effectively severing bus connections across the region. Witnesses said an argument erupted between transport workers and a BM College student over paying a half fare on a bus travelling from Muladi to Barishal on Saturday evening. Read more: Dhaka-bound bus services from Rajshahi, Chapainawabganj, Natore halt Several hundred students rushed to the terminal after being informed and clashed with transport workers, they said. The students allegedly vandalised over 100 buses, damaged the terminal building and looted money from ticket counters. One bus was set on fire, but Fire Service personnel managed to douse the flames before they spread. Transport workers claimed that 20–25 workers were injured in the attack and that ticket counters were completely destroyed. Students, however, denied the allegations, accusing transport workers of damaging buses and setting fire to one of them to shift blame onto students. A visit to the terminal on Sunday morning showed rows of shattered buses, with not a single one left intact. Leaders of the Bus Owners’ Group said the association operates 190 buses, of which about 40 were outside the terminal during the attack. The remaining 150 were vandalised. “Not a single piece of glass is untouched,” said one owner, adding that none of the damaged buses can return to service without major repairs. The suspension of bus services has caused severe suffering for passengers. Sylhet-Sunamagnj bus services suspended Ahsan Mohammad, a government employee who came to the terminal to travel to Kushtia after learning of his mother’s illness, said that for such a long journey no alternative mode of transport was viable. Mosharraf Hossain, president of the Barishal District Bus Owners’ Group, said, “We didn’t call any strike. There isn’t a single bus left intact; what will we operate?” He said the owners of long-distance buses may also have stopped operations due to safety concerns. The estimated losses amount to Tk several crore.

A case was filed against 23 individuals, including Barishal District Chhatra Dal's Organising Secretary Sohel, over the assault on two journalists and the burning of a motorcycle in front of the Barishal court gate. Among the accused, 13 have been named, while 10 remain unidentified, according to Officer-in-Charge (OC) Mizanur Rahman of Kotwali Model Police Station. The case was filed on Friday by Khalid Saifullah, General Secretary of Barishal Reporters Unity. OC Mizanur Rahman said, “The accused have been charged with unlawful entry into the court premises, assault, vandalism, and issuing death threats.” CID files sedition case against Hasina, 72 others over conspiratorial online meeting According to local sources, on Thursday afternoon, two journalists—N Amin Russell and Moniruzzaman—were attacked while performing their professional duties at the court premises. The attack was allegedly led by Sohel, accompanied by 12-15 others. The assailants physically assaulted the journalists, damaged their cameras and mobile phones, and took cash from them. Additionally, a motorcycle belonging to one of the journalists was set on fire at the court’s main gate. The injured journalists are currently receiving treatment at Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital in Barishal.

A Jubo Dal leader was hacked to death allegedly by a Swechchhasebak Dal leader in Barishal’s Kaunia housing area on Sunday night. The deceased was Suruj Gazi ,35, son of Kanchan Gazi from the same area. Nayan Gazi, son of Taslim Gazi, was also injured in the attack. Trader killed over money dispute in Khulna Nazmul Nishat, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Kaunia police station, said one group attacked the other with sharp weapons over a trifling matter, leaving Suruj Gazi dead. He asked the victim’s family to file a complaint. Local people said  there was long standing enmity between Swechchhasebak Dal leader Shahin Howlader, also known as Sona Shahin and Jubo Dal leader Suruj over land and establishing dominance in the area. During an altercation at night,  Shahin, along with his wife Shabana and sons Imran and Liyan, attacked Suruj with sharp weapons, leaving Suruj and Nayan injured, they said. Suruj succumbed to his injuries on the way to a hospital. Two suspected robbers killed in Shariatpur lynch-mob attack Nayan is currently undergoing treatment at Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital in a critical condition. Following Suruj’s death, an enraged mob set fire to the house of the accused Shahin. Firefighters later brought the blaze under control. Police said they are investigating the incident and will take legal action against those responsible.

A ward level leader of Jubo League was hospitalised in critical condition after unknown attackers hacked him and cut the veins of his legs in Barishal city, said police on Friday. The attack on Shahriar Sachib Rajib, general secretary of the ward No-21 unit of the city, occurred on Thursday night. Rajib was shifted to a Dhaka hospital from Barishal Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital on Friday morning for advanced treatment, she said. Mizanur Rahman, officer-in-charge of Kotwali Model Police Station, said a video footage shows two men equipped with sharp weapons chasing him around 9:30pm. Read: Jubo Dal activist hacked to death in Barguna After catching him, the miscreants hacked him indiscriminately with the weapons and fled away, he said. There were marks of injuries in legs, hands and chest of Rajib, the OC said, fearing his condition was critical. Efforts were underway to nab those involved and uncover the reason behind the attack, the police official added.

The death toll from the speedboat capsize in the Kirtankhola River in Barishal rose to four with recovery of three more bodies from the river on Sunday . The deceased were identified as Al Amin, 23, the speedboat driver and passengers Md Imran Hossain alias Emon, 29 and Md Russell Amin, 24. Barishal sadar Naval Police in-charge Sanatan Chandra Sarker said the bodies were recovered between 8:30 am and 9:30 am near Jantar Hat, located at the entrance of the Laharhat canal on the Kirtankhola River. Police sent the bodies to the morgue of Barisal Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital for autopsy. After the post-mortem, the bodies will be handed over to the families. Earlier on Thursday, the body of a passenger, Jalish Mahmud, 50, was also recovered. 1 dead, 3 missing after speedboat-barge collision in Barishal Another passenger, Sajal Das, 30, could not be traced yet. Sajal, son of Dulal Das of  Rahmatpur area of Barishal city, used to work in the tuberculosis control program of BRAC in Bhola.   

A fire that broke out in the medicine department building of Barishal Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital (SBMCH) has been brought under control within an hour. The fire broke out in the warehouse of the building, located on the ground floor of the hospital, on Sunday morning. Witnesses said smoke billowing from the building engulfed the hospital building. Panic gripped the patients and their relatives, forcing them to flee the building immediately. 31 rescued after fire breaks out on LNG-carrying vessel off Ctg port The fire was first reported after a local resident noticed smoke coming from the hospital's medicine building and immediately alerted the fire service, said Assistant Director Dr. Moniruzzaman Shahin of SBMCH. Upon receiving the information, seven firefighting units rushed to the scene and brought the fire under control with the help of local volunteers after an hour. It is initially suspected that the fire originated from an electrical short circuit, said Deputy Assistant Director of Barishal Fire Service and Civil Defense Belal Uddin. The fire spread rapidly due to the presence of explosive materials inside the warehouse, he said. Another BSC ship catches fire in Ctg; one dies However, the firefighters are still working to control the smoke as of the filing of this report at 4 pm. No casualties have been reported immediately, and there are no details about the extent of the damages. The hospital authorities managed to evacuate the patients.

Police detained three people including an Indian woman from Wazirpur upazila election office in Barishal while trying to get national identity cards on Thursday. The detainees were Sabitri Baria, 29, daughter of Shyam Sundar Baria of Bankavihar village in Patnanagar upazila of India’s Odisha state, Ebaidul Hawlader, 26, and his elder brother Enamul Hawlader, 29, sons of late Abdus Salam Hawlader of ward No-6 under Satla union under in the Wazirpur upazila. Shop employee burnt to death in Barishal fire The detainees including the Indian national tried to make the NID card with the certificate and birth certificate issued by Satla Union Parishad Chairman Md Shaheen Hawlader and UP member Md Harun. The detainees said Ebaidul married Sabitri seven years ago though they could not show any documents of this marriage. JCI Barishal distributes warm clothes to 150 children Changing name as Halima Khanam, the Indian national submitted fake documents to the Wazirpur Upazila Election Office. Suspecting their movement and fake documents, Election Officer Abdur Rashid detained them and handed them over to police. BPL 2024: Chattogram Challengers beat Fortune Barishal, march to second spot UP Chairman Md Shaheen Howlader said the certification was taken by misunderstanding. Md Jafar Ahmed, Officer-in-Charge of Wazirpur Model Police Station, said an interrogation was underway while legal actions would be taken against them.

The Awami League won a comfortable two-thirds majority for a fourth election in a row on Sunday (January 07, 2024), in 299 out of 300 constituencies, and a strong showing by independent candidates as predicted. Ruling party candidates won in 222 seats in Sunday’s election, while independent candidates — most of them belonging to AL — won 62 seats. Read more: Election 2024: List of winners from Rajshahi division Here’s the list of candidates from Barishal division who won in the National Election 2024:

Awami League candidate in Barishal-4 constituency, Shammi Ahmed, and independent candidate for Barishal-5 and also former mayor of Barishal City Corporation, Serniabat Sadiq Abdullah, are out of the election race. The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court today turned down a leave-to-appeal petition lodged by Awami League candidate Shammi Ahmed, seeking withdrawal of Election Commission's cancellation of her candidature. Read: Local AL leader arrested with firearm in Chattogram  The Division also upheld the cancellation of the candidacy of Serniabat Sadiq Abdullah. A six-member bench of the Appellate Division, headed by Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan, passed the orders after hearing. Lawyers, including Advocate Yusuf Hossain Humayun, Advocate Momtaj Uddin Fakir, Advocate Shah Monjurul Haque and Advocate Motahar Hossain Saju, stood for Shammi Ahmed in court today. On December 15, Awami League candidate for Barisal-4 constituency Shammi Ahmed's candidacy was cancelled by the Election Commission on the allegation of dual citizenship. Later, on December 18, the High Court dismissed the writ petition filed by Shammi Ahmed against the cancellation of her candidature. On December 19, the chamber judge of the Appellate Division upheld the High Court order rejecting another writ petition filed by Shammi Ahmed challenging the cancellation of her candidature. On December 22, Shammi Ahmed filed a petition with the chamber judge court of the Appellate Division seeking allocation of election symbols. On the other hand, the returning officer declared the independent candidate for Barishal-5 constituency, Serniabat Sadiq Abdullah, valid. Read: Rajshahi-4: 15 injured as AL supporters attack independent candidate's procession  But Awami League-nominated candidate for the same constituency, Zahid Faruk, appealed to the Election Commission, seeking cancellation of Sadiq’s candidacy on the allegation of dual citizenship. On December 15, the Election Commission (EC) cancelled the candidature of Serniabat Sadiq Abdullah. Later, Sadiq filed a writ petition with the High Court challenging the EC’s order. On December 18, the High Court stayed the Election Commission's order after hearing a writ petition filed by Sadiq. The next day, Zahid Faruk filed a petition with the chamber judge of the Appellate Division seeking a stay on the High Court order. After hearing the petition, the chamber judge stayed the High Court order. Sadiq filed a petition seeking withdrawal of the stay order issued by the chamber judge. The regular bench of the Appellate Division dismissed the petition today.