Lynching of brothers in Faridpur: Locals block highway, clash with police
Witnesses said thousands of villagers formed a human chain in the morning and later brought out a protest procession which started heading towards Dumain’s Panchapalli where the lynching occurred last Thursday.
Thousands of locals on Tuesday (23 April) blocked the Faridpur-Khulna highway and clashed with law enforcers in protest of the lynching of two brothers, both construction workers, over suspicion of setting fire to a Hindu temple in Faridpur last week.
They demanded the arrest of the accused involved with the incident at the Panchapalli area of Dumain union in Madhukhali upazila on Thursday (18 April) night.
The clashes resulted in a 10-kilometre-long tailback on the Faridpur-Khulna highway at around 10:00am.
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Police fired tear shells and blank bullets to bring the situation under control.
Additional police and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) members were deployed.
Witnesses said thousands of villagers formed a human chain in the morning and later brought out a protest procession which started heading towards Dumain's Panchapalli where the lynching occurred last Thursday.
"Due to the lynching incident in Dumain's Panchpalli, protesters tried to sporadically block the highway from Pilot School in Madhukhali upazila to Nawapara," said Miraj Madhukhali Police Station's Officer-in-Charge Miraj Hossain.
"The police tried to deter them by talking, throwing tear gas and blank bullets. This caused long traffic jams on the highway. The situation was later resolved," he added.
Ashraful, 21, and his brother Ashadul, 15, sons of Ghoperghat village's Shahjahan Khan, were beaten to death by a mob over suspicion of setting fire to a Hindu temple in Panchapalli area of Faridpur's Madhukhali upazila last Thursday.
According to locals, following the burning of a temple of Hindu Goddess Kali in the area, some of the residents beat up the construction workers suspecting that they were behind the incident. Later, they were kept confined in a room at an under-construction school building.
BNP forms probe committee
The BNP has criticised the lynching of two brothers and formed a probe committee.
The party's Vice Chairman Nitai Roy Chowdhury has been convener of the committee, the BNP said in a press statement issued Tuesday (23 April).
The other two members are Advisor to the BNP chairperson Bijon Kanti Sarker, the party's Organising Secretary Shama Wahed, Executive Committee member Barrister Ruhul Kuddus Kajol, and Religious Affairs Secretary Omolesh Das Apu.
The committee will submit its probe report to the central committee.
