Miscreants opened fire indiscriminately on a car from either side of the vehicle. The rear window of the car was shattered. Two persons in the car were killed in the gunfire. One of them was the driver.
Almost like a scene in a move, this incident took place yesterday, Saturday, at 2:45pm, at Bakalia Access Road in Chattogram. The police are still in the dark concerning the reason behind the shooting.
The persons killed in the incident were Mohammad Manik (30) and Abdullah (32).
Manik was a driver by profession and is from Hathazari Madunaghat.
According to eyewitnesses and police sources, a silver coloured car had been approaching Bakalia Access Road from the Karnaphuli Shah Amanat Bridge area. As the car entered the Access Road, three or four motorbike started chasing it and then opened fire on the car. Shots were also fired from the car the motorbike riders, but the motorbike riders had more firearms. They were all wearing helmets.
The rear window of the car was totally smashed the car itself was bullet-ridden in several places.
Manik had been in the driving seat. The motorbikes drove off after six to seven minutes of the shootout. Police and the local people took Manik and Abdullah from the car to Chattogram Medical College Hospital where the physician on duty declared them dead. There were four others in the car. They were all injured.
In the meantime, upon hearing the news, Manik’s mother, wife and children rushed to the hospital. Manik’s mother wailed, “I don’t want any post-mortem, I won’t file a case. Just give me my son’s body.” She said that Manik didn’t have any enmity with anyone.
The police are looking into whether the incident is linked to a past dispute between the two sides over land in the Notun Bridge area.
According to sources, the gunfire was actually intended to target a certain Akram for handing over “terror” Sajjad to the police on 15 March. Akram’s car was the same colour as this car. After receiving threats for handing over Sajjad, Akram’s wife Ruma Akhter had filed a case in this regard. Sajjad’s wife, Hasan and a few others were accused in the case.
When asked about the matter, city police deputy commissioner (south) Shakila Sultana told Prothom Alo this morning, two were killed in the gunfire. Investigations are on concerning the reason of the shootout. They are looking into if it was linked to Sajjad being handed over or regarding land dispute.