Police maintain law and order during hartal: DMP

27 June 2010, 18:00 PM

Staff Correspondent

The police arrested a total of 167 people from different areas in the city during dawn-to-dusk hartal on charges of obstructing the police, blocking the roads, vandalising shops and vehicles and issuing threats. The arrestees include former BNP minister Mirza Abbas, lawmaker Shaheed Uddin Chowdhury Annee, former state minister Prof MA Mannan, Shamsher Mobin Chowdhury and Advocate Ahmed Azam Khan, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) said in a press release last night. The DMP also claimed that the police maintained law and order in the city during the hartal and normal situation has now been prevailing. It said Mirza Abbas was arrested from his Shahjahanpur residence at noon yesterday in connection with torching of a vehicle at Bijoynagar on Saturday evening after a case was filed in this connection. During the arrest, his supporters also attacked the law enforcers, injuring six policemen. A case was also filed against Mirza Abbas with Motijheel Police Station in connection with bomb blasts during the hartal period. Preliminary investigations revealed that vehicles were vandalised and torched in different areas of the city on Saturday at the directives of Mirza Abbas, the press release said. At around 9:00am, BNP leaders and activists led by BNP lawmaker Shahid Uddin Chowdhury Annee ransacked Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University and attacked their rivals. When the law enforcers arrived at the scene, unruly people attacked them, leaving four policemen injured. At around 7:15am, former state minister Prof MA Mannan and advocate Ahmed Azam Khan led a procession of pickets and held a rally, blocking a road near Petro Bangla office at Karwan Bazar. Some rickshaws were also damaged at that time. The two leaders also gave threat to policemen, the press release added. At around 11:00am, the DMP said, around 150 people led by Shamsher Mobin Chowdhury attacked the law enforcers in Mohakhali Wireless Gate area, injuring six policemen. The pickets also damaged rickshaws and beat up pedestrians, creating a panic during the hartal. Unruly people also clashed with the police in different areas including Kaptan Bazar, Shaheed Faruk Road and Jagannath University areas. The police charged batons and fired tear gas shells to disperse the pickets.