A BNP worker was shot dead on Friday afternoon in a gunfight between two armed factions over illegal sand extraction from the Padma river in Sujangor upazila, Pabna.
The shooting occurred at around 1pm in the Jotkakoriya Kolabagan area of the Padma riverbank, on the border of Chartarapur and Bhandara unions. The victim, Manju Sheikh, 35, a resident of the Aria Gohaelbari area, died at the scene. He was the nephew of Sheikh Abdur Rauf, member-secretary of the Sujangor upazila BNP, and of Sheikh Rahmot Ali, former president of the Chartarapur Union BNP.
According to local sources, two groups had long been in dispute over control of sand extraction in the Jotkakoriya area. Tensions were running high again on Friday morning. When members of both sides went to inspect the sand site, a gunfight broke out over territorial control, killing one man at the scene. Local residents then alerted police.
Sheikh Abdur Rauf said: “People from Chartarapur and Bhandara were coming to take sand, and my nephews tried to stop them. Several of them shot my nephew dead. I demand a proper investigation and the immediate arrest of the perpetrators. He was also a member of our party.”
Pabna Additional Superintendent of Police Rezinur Rahman confirmed the incident, saying: “A clash over sand extraction broke out between the two groups and Manju Sheikh was killed by gunfire. Police have been sent to the scene. The body will be taken to Pabna General Hospital. Police are working to establish the cause of the killing.”
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report