United News of Bangladesh

A crocodile was caught in fishermen’s fishing gear in the Padma River in  Charbhadrasan upazila of Faridpur early Monday, drawing a large crowd to the riverbank. Fishermen said the crocodile became entangled in a fishing-hook near Gopalpur ghat while they were fishing as usual in the early hours of the morning. Later, they managed to pull it out and brought it to the nearby ghat of Qazi Bari. As news of the rare catch spread, curious locals gathered in large numbers to see the reptile. Fishermen Swapan Bepari, Rajib Bepari, Rabiul Bepari and Billal Khan said they were fishing in the river when the crocodile got stuck in Swapan Bepari’s gear. They later informed the local authorities. Officials from the local administration and forest department soon visited the spot.

Police detained a speech-impaired man over the alleged killing of his mother in Natore’s Mallikhati Ghoshpara area on Sunday night. The deceased was identified as Shahida Begum, wife of the late Shariful Huda. Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Sadar Police Station Munsur Rahman said Shahida had been living with her only son, Ariful Huda, who has a speech impairment. As his mother scolded him Ariful allegedly struck his mother on the head with a kitchen grinding stone (shil nora), leaving her dead on the spot around 10:30 pm, he said quoting locals. Neighbours later informed police who detained the accused. The body was recovered and sent to Natore General Hospital morgue for autopsy. The OC said the accused will be interrogated under special arrangements.

A woman and her two daughters were killed as a Nor’wester lashed Melandaha upazila of Jamalpur district early Monday. The deceased were identified as Khuki Begum, 65, wife of the late Gani Mandal of Dagi area and her daughters Farida Akhter, 40, and Fateh Akhter, 37. A tree collapsed on their tin-shed house around 3:30 am during the storm at Purba Dagi village, said Melandah Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Jinnatul Ara. According to local residents and fire service, the three family members were sleeping when strong winds and gusts hit the area late at night. At one stage, a large mahogany tree beside their tin-shed house was uprooted and crashed onto the structure, leaving them dead on the spot. Immediate rescue efforts were not possible due to inclement weather, said police. Police and fire service personnel with assistance of locals recovered the bodies from under the debris in the morning. The UNO said the deceased's family will receive Tk 75,000 in government assistance.  

The body of a mosque imam was recovered a day after he went missing while bathing in the Dakatia River on the outskirts of Chandpur town. The deceased was identified as Mufti Md Shamsuddin (34), imam and caretaker of Al-Amin Orphanage and Mosque in the North Gunrajdi area. Officials of the Fire Service and Civil Defence said a diving team recovered the body on Sunday afternoon after it surfaced in the river a short distance from the incident site. Assistant Director of Fire Service Md Abdullah confirmed the recovery. According to locals, Shamsuddin went into the river for a bath after Zuhr prayers on Saturday and went missing shortly afterwards. When he did not return by Asr prayer time, staff members searched for him. His shoes, soap, lungi, towel and clothes were later found on the riverbank. Fire Service divers conducted a search operation until Saturday evening but could not locate him at that time. Later on Sunday, locals spotted the body floating on the water surface and informed authorities, after which it was recovered by the diving team. Police said the body was handed over to the family after they requested that no autopsy be conducted, allowing for burial.

A mobile court on Sunday fined a filling station in Shibganj upazila of Chapainawabganj on charges of attempting to illegally smuggle diesel, officials said. During the drive, around 800 litres of diesel were seized. The operation was conducted around 9pm by Shibganj Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) and Executive Magistrate Mazharul Islam. According to mobile court sources, acting on secret information, the drive was carried out at Shibganj Filling Station. During the operation, authorities found evidence of preparations to illegally transport 800 litres of diesel from the station. The seized fuel was immediately returned to storage tanks, officials said. The filling station owner was fined Tk 10,000 under the Consumer Rights Protection Act. The court also warned the owner to refrain from such activities in the future. UNO Mazharul Islam said drives against fuel smuggling will continue to prevent such irregularities.

A case has been filed over the death of a customs official who went missing while returning to Dhaka after completing training in Chattogram. The case was filed on Saturday night at Cumilla Sadar Dakshin Police Station by the victim’s mother, Nileema Bairagi, said OC Sirajul Mostofa. Nileema Bairagi alleged that her son’s death was not accidental in any way, but a murder. She demanded the immediate arrest of those responsible and exemplary punishment. Additional Superintendent of Police (DSB) of Cumilla, Istiak Hasan Amin, said that several police teams are working to find out the real cause of the incident. The investigation is ongoing. Meanwhile, after completing legal formalities, the body was taken to his village home in Tungipara, Gopalganj, on Sunday morning. Earlier, he was given a final tribute at his workplace. His colleagues paid their last respects with floral wreaths. The atmosphere at the customs office became emotional, with colleagues and relatives in tears. The victim, known as Bullet Bairagi, had a baby son, Abyay Bairagi, who is due to turn one on April 27. Police recovered the body of Bullet Bairagi, 35, from a footpath in Cumilla on Saturday morning, about 12 hours after he went missing. He was an Assistant Revenue Officer in the Customs, Excise and VAT Department. He was attending the 44th Basic Training Course in Chattogram. According to family sources, Bairagi went to Chattogram on April 11 for official training. After completing the course, he left for Dhaka by bus from Alankar intersection in Chattogram around 11:00pm on Friday. He remained in contact with his family during the journey. At around 2:25am, he last informed them that he had reached Tomchom Bridge intersection in Cumilla city. After that, his mobile phone was switched off and he could no longer be reached. Unable to trace him, his father, Sushil Bairagi, filed a general diary (GD) with Cumilla Kotwali Model Police Station on Saturday morning. Md Abdul Momin, Officer-in-Charge of Moynamati Highway Police Station, said police recovered the body of an unidentified man from a footpath beside the Irish Hotel and Restaurant on the Dhaka–Chattogram highway after receiving a call to the national emergency service 999. Later around 1:00pm, family members identified the body as Bullet Bairagi. The OC said no major injury marks were found on the body, although the face appeared slightly bloodstained.

At least Eighteen students of Soroi High School in Lama upazila of Bandarban fell ill with suspected heatstroke on Sunday amid a severe heatwave. The incident occurred around noon during classroom hours, school authorities said. Three days earlier, five more students had reportedly fallen sick in a similar manner. School Head Teacher Nitipurno Barua confirmed the incident. The affected students include those from classes Six to Ten, among them Sadiya Akter, Jannatul Mawa, Mirtihan Ibne Zia, Junayedul Islam, Abu Sufian, Shamima Akter, Md Yasin Arafat, Rubaiya Absar, Jannat Ara Begum, Khurshida Akter, Alifa Akter, Shahida Begum, Tasmin Akter, Songleng Mro, Fatema Akter and Shifa Akter. According to the school, frequent power outages due to excessive load shedding left classrooms extremely hot and uncomfortable amid the ongoing heatwave. As a result, students began to feel unwell and fainted one after another during classes. The affected students were given primary treatment and later taken home by their guardians. Students Fatema Akter and Shifa Akter said the classroom had no electricity and the extreme heat caused excessive sweating and discomfort before they lost consciousness. The Head Teacher said the school has 366 students and only three teachers, adding that frequent power disruptions and the ongoing heatwave have made teaching conditions unbearable, repeatedly affecting students’ health and disrupting classes. He also urged immediate improvement in electricity supply and urgent measures to address the extreme weather conditions.

At least five people were killed in lightning strikes in Phulchhari, Saghata and Sundarganj upazilas of Gaibandha district on Sunday afternoon. The deceased were identified as Mizanur Rahman, Manik Mia, Nambar Ali, and two children—Fuad and Rafi. Deputy Commissioner Masudur Rahman Mollah said the deceased included two children. Dhopadanga Union Parishad Chairman Mokhlesur Rahman Mondal said when two cousins- Fuad and Rafi- were playing on the veranda of a house at South Dhopadangga village lightning struck them, leaving the critically injured. Locals rushed them to Gaibandha General Hospital where doctors declared them dead. Farmer Manik Mia was killed by lightning while working in a field in Phulchhari upazila. Another victim, Nambar Ali, a farmer from Saghata upazila, also died in a lightning strike, said the DC. Sundarganj Upazila Nirbahi Officer Iffat Jahan Tuli said she was informed about the two deaths in Dhopadanga.

Members of the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) seized drugs worth more than Tk 37 lakh in separate operations along the Kushtia border on Sunday. At around 12:15 pm, a special patrol team from Kushtia Battalion (47 BGB) carried out an operation in the Mirpur bus stand area. During the drive, they searched a passenger bus of ‘Alhaj Enterprise’ travelling from Meherpur to Kushtia. They recovered 9,970 Yaba tablets, which were found abandoned. The estimated value of the tablets is Tk 29.91 lakh. Earlier, at about 1:45 am, a BGB patrol team from Kazipur BOP conducted a raid in the Kazipur Border Para area. They recovered 20 bottles of Indian liquor, 900 dexamethasone tablets, and 600 cyproheptadine tablets, all without any identified owner. The estimated value of these items is Tk 4.80 lakh. At around the same time, another patrol team from Pragpur BOP carried out a raid in the Gorura Mat area and seized 4,640 packets of Indian leaf bidis, valued at Tk 2.55 lakh. In a separate operation at about 2:00 am, a patrol team from Jamalpur BOP recovered 4 kg of Indian marijuana from the Dharmadah Mat area. The estimated value of the marijuana is Tk 14,000. The total value of all seized items is approximately Tk 37,40,200. Kushtia Battalion Commander, Lt Col Rashed Kamal Rony, said that the battalion remains firmly committed to enforcing a ‘zero tolerance’ policy against drugs and smuggling in border areas. He added that such operations will continue to protect young people from the harmful effects of drugs and to maintain law and order in border regions.

A man and his son were found dead in separate locations at Tongi of Gazipur on Sunday, both bearing injury marks. The deceased were identified as Sohel Hossain and his younger son Sakibul Hasan Soyeb. Police detained Sohel’s elder son Sohan Hasan for questioning over the incident. Sohel had been living at his Bonamla residence along with the two sons. According to police and locals, the body of Sakibul was found inside their home in the morning, while that of his father near a rail line in the area. Police recovered the bodies and sent those to Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmad Medical College Hospital morgue for autopsy. Officer-in-Charge of Tongi East Police Station Md Mehdi Hasan said they recovered the bodies on information and both victims had injuries on their heads and other body parts. He, however, said the exact cause of death is still unknown. “An investigation is underway. The elder son is being interrogated. Legal procedures are in progress,” he said.