Shop employees in Sylhet put up roadblock

23 March 2010, 18:00 PM

Staff Correspondent, Sylhet

Employees of over 250 shops of a mall in Sylhet city yesterday put up a barricade on the main road in Zindabazar area to press for release of two of their fellows who along with three shop owners were arrested on Monday night. The barricade was removed at around 1:00pm after local political leaders assured the agitating shop employees of arranging bail for the two. Shop owners and employees of Al-Hamra Shopping City clashed with police on Monday night, leaving at least 15 people, including three policemen, injured. After the incident, police arrested three shop owners and two employees at the mall. Though the shop owners were released at midnight, the employees--Sayedur Rahman and Shabbir--remained in the custody as of filing of this report at 7:00pm yesterday. Witnesses and police said the trouble began at around 8:00pm when a customer and the employees of a cosmetics store at the shopping mall exchanged heated words over price of an item. At one stage, the customer went out of the mall and returned after a few minutes with some police personnel who settled the matter. But the man again came to the mall with police personnel allegedly members of a patrol party at around 8:30pm. Seeing two people with knives in hands with the policemen, the shop owners and employees became agitated and swooped on the two. They also beat up havilder Quamruzzaman, constables Shamsu and Siddique. During the incident, the shop owners and employees hurled brickbats at the police, prompting them to resort to baton charge on the shopkeepers and employees. At least 12 people, including shopkeeper Ali Masud, were injured in police action. Police also fired two blank shots to bring the situation under control. Traffic on the main road in front of the shopping mall remain suspended for an hour from 8:15 pm.