United News of Bangladesh

A joyride turned tragic for three Class X students on the last day of their board exams, as their bike hit a tree and fell into a roadside ditch in the Mahamaya area of Sadar upazila Tuesday. While two students riding pillion died on the spot, the biker and a passerby sustained injuries in the accident on the Chandpur-Cumilla regional highway around 10pm on Tuesday, Abdur Rashid, officer-in-charge of Sadar Police Station, said on Wednesday. Read:Awami League activist shot dead in Bandarban The deceased were identified as Shanta, 17, son of Hanif Patwari, and Asif, 18, son of Akter Patwari of Sadar upazila. The two sat for this year's Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examination. Of the injured, Sazzad, the biker, has been shifted to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital. "The bodies have been sent to the local hospital morgue for post-mortem," the police officer said.

A 45-year-old Awami League (AL) activist died while two others received bullet injuries in an attack by assailants in Tarasa area of Bandarban's Roangchhari upazila Tuesday, police said. The deceased was identified as Uthoanu Marma, son of Najirang Marma. Read: Ward councillor among two shot dead in Cumilla gun attack Touhid Kabir, in-charge of the Roangchhari police station, said the assailants barged into the house of Uthoanu around 7 pm on Tuesday and opened fire, leaving Uthoanu dead and two others injured. "The injured are being treated at Sadar hospital." Police suspect the attack was carried out over area domination. "A probe is on and we are trying to nab the culprits," he said. Read: Gun attack on madrasa in Cox’s Bazar Rohingya camp; 6 dead  

Police filed a case against 516 people over the clash between BNP activists and police during BNP’s Monday’s rally demanding its chairperson Khaleda Zia’s release for her treatment abroad. Natore Sadar Police Station SI Rafiqul Islam filed the case at noon against 516 people including 400 unidentified ones, said Abu Sadad, officer-in-charge of Natore Sadar Police Station. Read: Journo among 20 hurt as BNP men, police clash in Natore Police have so far arrested nine people in this connection, the OC added. Meanwhile, the party office of BNP in Natore remained closed since Tuesday morning. On Monday, BNP leaders and activists gathered in front of their party office at Alaipur around 10 am to hold a rally as part of their central program demanding its Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s release for her treatment abroad. Read: Wrong instructions to SSC candidates: Natore teacher suspended for 5 years At one stage, police obstructed them, triggering a clash. At least 20 people, including a journalist, were injured in the clash.

A man reportedly severed four fingers of his father on Tuesday at Uthali village in Magura sadar upazila  over property related dispute. Injured Shahidul Haque,70, is undergoing treatment at Magura sadar hospital while his son Hanif Mia,45, remained absconding since the incident, said Officer-in-Charge of Magura police station Monjurul Alam. Read: Off-duty constable’s hanging body recovered from Magura playground Shahidul lives with his elder son Golam Mostafa but his younger son Hanif, who lives in a separate house, used to lock into altercation with his father over the ancestral property. On Monday, when Shaidul was drinking tea at a tea stall Hanif suddenly attacked Shahidul with a sharp knife and stabbed him, severing his four fingers , said OC Monjurul. Read: Bank official killed in Magura road crash Shafiur Rahman, a doctor of the emergency department of Sadar hospital said Shahidul was given primary treatment but his condition is critical. OC Monjurul said a complaint has been lodged at the police station in this regard and efforts are on to arrest Hanif Mia.

A woman drug peddler died after falling off the roof of her four-storey building in the Aminbazar area of Savar Tuesday morning as anti-narcotics sleuths attempted to arrest her. The deceased was identified as Panna Begum. Read: Female drug peddler held in Chuadanga Acting on a tip-off, a team from the Narcotics Control Authority's Savar office raided Panna Begum's house this morning. Sensing the presence of the anti-narcotics sleuths, the accused went to the terrace of her house but fell to the ground as she tried to jump to the roof of the adjacent building. Panna Begum died on the spot, officials said. "The body has sent it to the morgue of Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital for an autopsy," an officer said.

Police have arrested a 33-year-old woman in Chattogram for allegedly duping poor people on the pretext of providing loans. The arrestee has been identified as Jannatun Naima. On Monday evening, the victims, mostly low-income earners and beggars, gheraoed Naima’s office in the Hamzarbagh area and demanded that she returned their money. Cops were soon alerted and a team from the Panchlaish police station rushed to her rescue, only to place her under arrest subsequently. Also read: Two arrested for IGP's signature fraud According to police, Jannatun runs an NGO -- ‘Save As Your Earn’ -- but she has not taken the mandatory licence from the government. Officer-in-charge of Panchlaish police station Zahidul Kabir said, "Naima who started the NGO last year took money from domestic helps and other economically poor people in the name of arranging a loan of Tk 4,000 each from the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief." "The NGO collected Tk 200 each from around 14,000 low-income earners over the past two years," he added. Also read: Man gets one year in jail over fraud in Ektee Bari Ektee Khamar project To gain people’s trust, the accused showed them a draft of the loan documents, forging the signature of a deputy secretary of the department of Disaster Management, the OC said. Whenever people would enquire about the loans, she would tell them that they will get a phone call directly from the ministry, said OC Zahidul.

Two madrasa students were killed and 6 more sustained injuries as a speeding truck collided with an auto-van in Kenduli area of Joypurhat sadar upazila on Monday. The deceased were identified as Zihad,10, and Abdullah,9, both students of Shailotti Hafizia Madrasa in Panchbibi upazila. The injured were all students and teachers from the same madrasa and they are currently being treated at Joypurhat Modern District Hospital. Officer-in-Charge of Joypurhat sadar police station Alamgir Jahan said around evening on  Monday  some students were returning to the madrasa in an auto-van after collecting donations from different villages. READ: Chandpur road crash leaves two dead Near the Kenduli area a speeding truck from the opposite side collided with the auto-van, leaving Zihad dead on the spot, said the OC. Fire service officials rescued the seven others injured and admitted them to the district hospital. Abdullah  was referred by the hospital to Shaheed Ziaur Rahman Medical College for more advanced treatment, but died on the way there. READ: Bank official killed in Magura road crash  The truck driver was detained with the truck in this regard, said OC Alamgir.

Three days after he was reported missing Dhaka University stduent Hamid Sikder Himel was on Monday found imprisoned in Tangail jail, a magistrate said. He was held on Friday while giving a proxy exam on behalf of a candidate in the recruitment tests for deputy food inspector post of Directorate General of Food, said Md Ataur Rahman Rabby, executive magistrate of district commissioner’s office on Monday. On Friday Himel, a masters student at DU chemistry department, was given a one-month jail term by a mobile court, he said. Also read: 3 missing sisters fled Dhaka home for the love of father, Rab found them During the hearing he was asked several times about his parent’s address and phone number but he didn’t provide any, said the magistrate. On early Friday, Himel told his roommates in Shahidullah Hall of DU that he was going home in Sakhipur upazila in Tangail. His personal phone number remained unreachable since then and his family members started worrying about his safety. On Saturday his cousin Mahfuz Talukder , another DU student filed a general diary at the Shahbagh police station reporting Himel as missing. Also read: Fake vocational examinee arrested from exam center Himel is a student of masters at Chemistry department in Dhaka University.

Baton-wielding police on Monday clashed with BNP activists during a rally in Khulna city injuring several people, including a journalist, local BNP said. The district BNP organised the rally in front of its office here as part of a nationwide programme to pressure the government to allow party chief Begum Khaleda Zia to travel abroad for better treatment. She is now receiving medical treatment in Dhaka’s Evercare hospital for multiple health problems. Police used batons to try to disperse the rally after it started at 12 noon, said Shamsuzzaman Chanchal, assistant office-secretary of Khulna BNP. He said police detained some of the leaders and members of the party. Also read: Journo among 20 hurt as BNP men, police clash in Natore Nazrul Islam Monju, president of city BNP said the party will not be silenced by such actions of overzealous police. Monju said local police are not even heeding the home minister who said BNP can hold such rallies. Also read: Police foil BNP's hunger strike prog in Khulna

An indefinite transport strike, enforced by Bangladesh Road Transport Workers' Federation (BRTWF), began in Sylhet division on Monday to press for their five-point demand. Commuters, including SSC examinees and office-goers, continued to suffer as all modes of public transport, including buses, CNG-run auto-rickshaws and freight trucks went off the roads in the division. However, vehicles carrying SSC examinees, patients, foreign-bound people have been kept out of the purview of the strike. No long-haul buses have left Sylhet since morning due to the strike and transport workers were seen picketing on the roads. Read: Indefinite transport strike in Sylhet from Monday Private vehicles were seen dominating the streets in Sylhet city in absence of public transport. Talking to UNB, a number of passengers expressed anger and frustration over the frequent transport strikes. Hossain Ahmed, a bank official waiting at the Sylhet Central Bus Terminal, said, “Transport owners go on strike for simple reasons. They want to realise their demands, making us hostage. This is very unfair.” He demanded an end to such strikes in the emergency services sector by enacting a law.