Photo : Messenger
Over 100 teams of the Detective Branch of the police have been deployed in the field to arrest at least 1,500 identified suspects who were involved in the riots surrounding the mass gathering of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) on October 28.
In particular, the CCTV footage and videos of BNP activists who rampaged in several locations across the capital on the day of their rally are being analyzed, and a nationwide operation is being conducted to apprehend them.
Meanwhile, two individuals directly involved in the police killing have already been arrested. The youth who set fire to the car while wearing a bulletproof vest has also been identified. Alongside the police, the elite force RAB has also initiated the operation.
The Chief of the Detective Branch (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), Additional Commissioner Harun Or Rashid, told reporters, “A total of 36 cases have been filed so far in connection with the riots at the BNP’s grand rally on October 28 and the burning of cars the next day on October 29. There are more than 1,500 named suspects in these cases. Besides, there are thousands more who are unknown. We are conducting operations to apprehend them.”
“Dividing into over one hundred teams, our intelligence department is conducting operations in the capital and various districts. We have identified the suspects by reviewing our CCTV footage and video clips collected in various ways during the sabotage incident,” the Additional Commissioner said.
He further mentioned that the youth who set fire to the car on October 28 while wearing a bulletproof jacket has been identified. His name is Rabiul Islam Nayan, and he is the member secretary of Dhaka South Jubo Dal. Efforts are being made to bring him to justice.
According to the DMP, a total of 28 cases were filed in connection with the killing of policemen during the BNP rally on October 28, the attack on the judge's house, the arson attack on 26 vehicles at the Rajarbagh police line, the fire at the traffic police box, the fire in vehicles, the obstruction of police work, and sabotage. Among them, one case has been filed in Shahbag police station in the Ramna division of DMP, 11 in six police stations of the Motijheel division, three in Wari division police, two in Tejgaon division police, seven in Mirpur division police, three in Gulshan division police, and one in Uttara division police. Additionally, eight more cases, including car burnings and murders related to the three-day blockade, were filed on October 30 in different police stations in the capital.
Meanwhile, a total of 952 people were arrested in the operation conducted on October 28 and 29. Among them, 27 in Ramna division police, 217 in Lalbagh, 145 in Motijheel, 112 in Wari, 71 in Tejgaon, 279 in Mirpur, 50 in Gulshan, and 51 in Uttara.
DMP Media Centre Deputy Commissioner Farooq Ahmed confirmed this information.
Officials from the intelligence department mentioned that the site of the clash, where it started on October 28 during the BNP's grand rally and the situation afterward, has been reviewed. The CCTV footage and videos collected from various locations, particularly Kakrail Masjid, IEDB Bhaban, Kakrail intersection, Nightingale intersection, Paltan Police Station, Rajarbagh Police Line, Arambagh, and Bijayanagar, have been reviewed.
The incident at Kakrail was initiated by BNP activists from Kushtia. They were the first to attack the vehicles going to the Awami League rally. Later, a group of BNP activists from Rajbari joined this group and attacked the police first. When the conflict spread from this point, BNP activists started attacking, vandalising, and setting fire to the police at various places.
Police officials revealed that they are working on every spot. In addition to the 1,500 individuals whose names have been identified, pictures have been taken of those whose names are not known by watching the video. The arrest operation is being carried out based on these pictures. More than one hundred DMP DB teams are working across the country.
Meanwhile, alongside the DB, RAB is also working to arrest the suspects. 15 battalions are conducting operations across the country, including five RAB battalions in Dhaka with RAB headquarters.
Commander Khandaker Al Moin, Legal and Media Wing Director of RAB, told the Daily Messenger, “RAB is working to apprehend the saboteurs on October 28 and 29. Members of our battalions are on the ground all over the country, along with special units from RAB headquarters.”
He also said, Our intelligence unit is working with intelligence information and technology support from different districts. We will be able to apprehend many of those who participated in the sabotage and bring them to justice as soon as possible.
Messenger/Disha
