Petrol bomb on bus again

Eight people were burned, two of them badly, in Comilla yesterday in a mindless petrol bomb attack on a running bus, bringing to mind the disturbing images of such attacks during the BNP-led opposition's countrywide blockade early this year.

The attack near Bangladesh Jute Research Centre on Dhaka-Chittagong highway at Chandina happened around midnight, when most of the people were offering Shab-e-Barat prayers.

There was no political programme yesterday and it remains unclear who carried out the attack and why.

Police detained two local Jamaat leaders for questioning, said Shah Abid Hossain, superintendent of Comilla police. He, however, would not give their names.

Those critically burned are Anjan Kumar Dey, 50, and Ranjit Sharma, 57. Doctors said their injuries were severe and their respiratory tracts were damaged.

They are taking treatment at the intensive care unit of the burn unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

Four other injured, with four to 16 percent burns, were also admitted to the DMCH.

Zahirul Islam and Lovely Akhter, a couple from Narayanganj, took primary treatment at Comilla Medical College Hospital, Comilla police said quoting doctors there.

The Unique Paribahan bus, with around 40 people on board, was heading from Dhaka to Rangamati, said Abid.

"Miscreants attacked the bus from left side," he told The Daily Star by phone.

Two firebombs were hurled inside, with one of them burning the middle portion of the bus and the other the back, he added.

Imran Hossain, a victim, said he was in the middle row of the bus and was asleep.

"I woke up to see flames around me. I escaped through the door as the front part was not on fire," he told this correspondent at the DMCH, adding that the bus left had Dhaka around 9:45pm.

Law enforcers are working to identify the perpetrators and establish their motive, but they said the attack resembled those occurred during the 20-party alliance's blockade in the first three months of the year.

During the blockade that began on January 6, at least 95 people were killed -- 64 of them in arson attacks alone.

Over a 1,000 more, mostly general people, were wounded. Some of them are still taking treatment.

At that time, several attacks took place in different parts of Comilla. A deadly petrol bomb attack at Chouddagram on February 3 claimed eight lives and injured several others.

THE VICTIMS

Critically injured Anjan is an adviser at Bishwo Shahitto Kendro and Ranjit a teacher at Rangamati Government Women's College.

The other victims are Imran Hossain, an LGED employee (15 percent burns); Suman Chandra Nath, a textile engineer of Rangamati (15 percent burns); Khokon Chakma of Rangamati (16 percent burns) and Bazlur Rahman, a day labourer of Jhenidah (four percent burns).

Anjan, who suffered 44 percent burns, was seen writhing in pain with an oxygen mask on.

His younger brother Ranjan Dey said for the last few weeks Anjan had been travelling to Rangamati frequently to see their ailing mother.

Ranjit sustained 26 percent burns.

Samanta Lal Sen, coordinator of DMCH Burn and Plastic Surgery Unit, said the two were "not out of danger".

Meanwhile, officials of police, Rab and Border Guard Bangladesh held a meeting at Chandina Police Station in the afternoon and decided to launch a joint operation to hunt down the attackers, reports a Comilla correspondent.