B’desh: Section 144 imposed in Rajshahi, Jamaati hartal fails

Bangladesh’s Rajshahi district was on security alert after Jamaat-e-Islami activists warned of more political violence on Wednesday if the Government failed to release war crime suspects.

The Rajshahi Metropolitan Police imposed section 144 on Tuesday night in four sections of the city, after Jamaati and Islami Chhatra Shibir activists announced plans to hold demonstrations on Wednesday, a Daily Star report said.

Jamaat in response, called a dawn-to-dusk hartal in Rajshahi division for Thursday to protest a ban on holding its Wednesday’s programme, the report said.

Rafiqul Islam, a member of the fundamentalist group, in a press release on Wednesday said the party called the hartal as they were not allowed to hold their pre-scheduled demonstration demanding release of the war crimes suspects, according to the report.

Islam said the Jamaat wanted to hold demonstrations in four areas of Rajshahi but the law enforcers did not gave them permission, and instead imposed section 144, the report said.

Earlier on Wednesday, Jamaat-Shibir activists enforced half-day hartals with some stray incidents in Rajshahi, Natore, Chapainawabganj, Laxmipur and Tangail districts. The pro-hartal activists vandalised at least 11 vehicles in Natore and Chapainawabganj till noon, the report said.

(With inputs from Daily Star)

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