MUKTAGACHA, Bangladesh — A trivial roadside argument between a trolley driver and a van driver in the Muktagacha area of Mymensingh district escalated into clashes between two groups, leaving 15 people injured, including five police officers, authorities said.
The clashes broke out Saturday evening, Feb. 28, near the small mosque crossing in the Atani Bazar area and surrounding neighborhoods.
According to eyewitnesses and police sources, the dispute began Friday afternoon, Feb. 27, when a trolley driver from Tarati union and a van driver from the Parratangi area argued over a traffic jam in the Atani Bazar area. A local shopkeeper named Sohel tried to mediate, but tensions flared. Later that Friday evening, two shops belonging to Sohel and his brother were vandalized.
The dispute escalated Saturday afternoon when about 200 people from the Tarati and Parratangi areas, armed with sticks and homemade weapons, faced off at the small mosque crossing in Atani Bazar. At least 10 to 12 shops on both sides of the road were vandalized. When Muktagacha police arrived to control the situation, they were hit by bricks, leaving five officers and 10 others from both sides injured.
To restore order, additional police, detective branch officers, the 2nd Armed Police Battalion and RAB-14 personnel arrived in armored vehicles at about 8:30 p.m. Police fired sound grenades and blank rounds to disperse the crowd. Additional forces were deployed and the situation was brought under control.
Abdullah Al Mamun, additional superintendent of police for administration in Mymensingh district, said the tensions between residents of the Tarati and Parratangi areas had been brought under control through law enforcement. He said no one would be spared in such incidents and anyone found instigating violence would be brought under the law. The law and order situation in the area is now normal, he said.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report