3 dead, dozens injured in clashes

At least three people, including two members of Islamist outfit Hizb-ut Tawhid, were killed and several dozen others, including policeman, injured, in fierce clashes over construction of a Hizb-ut Tawhid mosque in Sonaimuri upazila of Noakhali district on Monday, forcing authorities to deploy Border Guard Bangladesh personnel, among others.
Police officials said a tense situation is still prevailing following the clash but they were trying to bring the situation under control using force. They have so far held over a hundred male and female villagers in this connection in the trouble area.
The police recovered the bodies of Ibrahim Khan Rubel, 27, and Muhammad Solaiman, 24, while a 50-year-old day labourer Mujibur Rahman died from bullet wounds, police officials said.
Both the bodies of Ibrahim and Solaiman bore marks of injury and it appeared the attackers had used sharp weapons in beating them.
The injured were rushed to different local hospitals and medical centres.
Witnesses said trouble had been brewing in Chashirhat union of Sonaimuri for a long time through arguments between the Sunni Muslim and Hizb-ut Tawhid followers over the Islam and its rituals, and pronunciation of Islamic words.
Imams of local Sunni mosques on March 11 declared Hizb-ut Tawhid a non-Muslim organisation and called on villagers to resist the Tawhid’s plan to build a mosque in the locality.
Several hundred villagers brought out a procession to submit a memorandum to the Upazila Nirbahi Officer to stop the construction of Hizt-ut-Tawhid’s mosque and expel them from the locality.
On the way to the UNO office, the police and ruling Awami League leaders intercepted the procession and promised the villagers that the issue would be settled through local arbitration.
But an hour later, the locals again gathered in the area and started marching toward the UNO office.
The locals alleged Hizb-ut-Tawhid, whose members gathered from Chittagong and other nearby districts, allegedly carried out attacks on the procession, triggering the clash.
‘We are not sure who attacked whom first,’ said Noakhali’s additional police superintendent Ashrafuzzman, adding, ‘the clash ensued over the construction of Tawhid’s mosque.’
People from nearby villages joined in the sporadic clashes, and people set fire to several houses in Pokra village, known as a Hizb-ut-Tawhid stronghold.
The angry people also set fire to two dozen vehicles of the ‘Islamic group.’
During the clash, two people were killed while a man reportedly died from bullet wounds.
Another police official said law enforcers had only used non-lethal weapons to control the situation.
‘We are not sure how the man was shot. But, one of our constables also was shot at from a lethal weapon. We suspect it was an act of militancy. We sent him to Dhaka for better treatment,’ the official told New Age.
On information, additional police on riot gear fired blanks and tear gas shells at about 5pm to bring the situation under control.
Eliash Sharif, the Noakhali superintendent of police, said there had been a longstanding dispute between the Hizbut Tawhid members and the local Muslims for some years.
The locals believed that the followers of Hizb-ut-Tawhid founder Mohammad Bayezid Khan Ponni were carrying out ‘anti-Islamic’ activities.
Two years ago, the Hizb-ut-Tawhid left the area but they held a rally recently.
Hizb-ut Tawhid has been publicising various aspects of its ideology through countrywide rallies, seminars, documentary screenings and civil society gatherings, according to government security agencies.
Many government law enforcers believe the outfit preaches ‘confusing and orthodox beliefs about Islam.’
Several outfits including Hizb-ut-Tawhid, Islami Samaj, Ulema Anjuman al Baiyinaat, Islamic Democratic Party, Tawhid Trust, Tamir ud-Deen and Allahr Dal were blacklisted by the government because of their suspected involvement in militant activities.