Police have detained 25 people in a sweep of the remote char areas of the Padma in Daulatpur, Kushtia, aimed at curbing armed gangs, illegal occupation and crime.
About 200 police took part in the drive, which ran from dawn to afternoon on Friday.
The media cell of Kushtia district police said on Friday night that various armed groups have long carried on criminal activity using the vast chars of the Padma as a refuge. Clashes and gunfire are frequent in these areas over the occupation of char land and sand quarries, the smuggling of drugs and arms, and the struggle for dominance.
This has left local residents and farmers feeling unsafe. Searches were therefore carried out at various places in Ramkrishnapur, Chilmari, Philipnagar and Maricha unions of Daulatpur upazila. Besides identifying and detaining suspects, the drive sought to catch people wanted under arrest warrants.
Daulatpur police station officer-in-charge Khaledur Rahman said the drive was carried out to curb the activities of armed gangs and drug traders and ensure the safety of ordinary people.
Additional Superintendent of Police Faisal Mahmud, spokesman for Kushtia district police, said: “Twenty-five people were detained in the drive.”
Superintendent of Police Aminul Islam said the drive was conducted to control crime and curb armed gangs in the chars. The district police of Rajshahi, Pabna and Natore are understood to have carried out the same drive in the chars of the Padma at the same time.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report