At least 25 people including seven policemen were injured Sunday in clashes between hartal supporters and the law enforcers in Habiganj and Sylhet during the nationwide hartal enforced by Hefajat-e-Islam. Hefajat called the general strike protesting the killing of its activists and the "attack on them by ruling party men" Friday during anti-Modi demonstrations in Dhaka, Chattogram and other districts. In Habiganj's Ajmiriganj upazila, picketers locked into an argument with policemen as they were conducting patrols. At one stage, hundreds of villagers and Hefajat supporters started attacking law enforcers with domestic weapons and brick chips, the locals said. Also read: Hefazat’s day-long hartal ends amid violence, clashes Seven policemen including Ajmiriganj Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Nurul Islam were injured in the clash. The hartal supporters also vandalised a pick-up van and torched two motorcycles of police. To take control of the situation, police fired 33 rounds of rubber bullets and hurdled brick chips towards the protesters.   OC Nurul Islam said, "Calm prevails now. However, additional law enforcers have been deployed at the spot. Of the seven injured policemen, sub-inspectors Polwel and Mujibur were admitted to the local hospital." Also read: Hartal: 30 hurt during clash with cops in Narayanganj Meanwhile, four teenagers were detained from Sylhet city during a clash between Hefajat activists and Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) men. Five including two BCL men were "injured in the clash," Sylhet Metropolitan Police Deputy Commissioner Ajbahar Ali Sheikh said.

A Sunamganj court on Tuesday placed Shahidul Islam Swadhin, the prime accused in a case over the attack on Hindu houses in Shalla upazila, on a 5-day remand. The court also put 29 other accused in the case on a 2-day remand each. Judicial magistrate of Sunamganj court passed the order, said inspector of Sunamganj court police Md Selim Newaz. Members of Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) arrested prime accused Swadhin, a member of Sarmangal union parishad in Dirai upazila, from Kulaura upazila in Moulvibazar district on Saturday. On March 17,  Hefajat-e-Islam followers vandalised several Hindu houses in Sunamganj as a Hindu youth had "criticised the party's Joint Secretary General Maulana Mamunul Haque on social media." Also read: Hefajat supporters' attack on Hindu houses: 700 people sued A young man from Hindu community, Jhumon from Noagaon village made a Facebook post on Tuesday night. As the post went viral, police detained him with the help of locals on the same night. Shalla Police Station Officer-in-Charge Nazmul Huq said several houses in the upazila's Noagaon village were attacked. Two separate cases were filed against 700 people on Thursday over the attack on Hindu houses. One case was filed by a victim and another one by the law enforcers, he said.

Prime Minister's ICT Advisor Sajeeb Wazed Joy has lashed out at anti-liberation elements, saying that their dream to turn Bangladesh into Afghanistan will never be allowed to become a reality.

Dhaka, Oct 22 (UNB) – As part of its countrywide programme, Hefajat-e-Islam staged a demonstration in front of Baitul Mukarram National Mosque on Tuesday protesting the killing of four people in Sunday’s violence in Bhola’s Borhanuddin upazila following a blasphemous Facebook post from a hacked account.