General people have so far caught 106 anarchists either before or after arson attacks and vandalism during the ongoing blockade and handed them over to law enforcers, police said yesterday, praising the public role.
The Dhaka Metropolitan Police said it had arrested a total of 633 suspects of such destructive activities during the blockade and hartal enforced by the BNP-led 20-party alliance that have claimed more than 30 lives.
DMP Commissioner Mohammad Asaduzzaman Miah yesterday appreciated general people for their role in catching the perpetrators red handed.
He said of the 106 caught by the public, 67 had been found involved with the BNP or one of its associated bodies while 39 were identified as activists of Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing Islami Chhatra Shibir.
Mobile courts have sentenced 28 of the anarchists to imprisonment of different terms. Police have filed 149 cases against those criminals in the capital.
The DMP commissioner said 83 people had so far suffered mild-to-severe burn injuries in petrol bomb or crude bomb attacks on vehicles and only 36 of these victims could be released after primary treatment.
Five such burn victims have lost their battle at the burn unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital while 45 are still fighting for lives. The injured include a child, a teacher, seven students including three females. The rest are common people from different professions.
Asaduzzaman Miah claimed that three on-duty policemen had lost lives in attacks of blockaders. In DMP area, 36 policemen and two Ansar members sustained injuries. Blockader have so far torched 120 vehicles on road and vandalised scores of others. The BNP-led alliance has been observing nationwide blockade of roads and waterways since January 5. The period has been marked by a rise in incidence of arson attack. The government, RAB and police have announced rewards for catching the miscreants.
Source: Dhaka Tribune