Four people had died in clashes in Chittagong
during the Jamaat strike on Tuesday, when violence erupted following an attack
on a police station in which Jamaat supporters reportedly used
firearms.
Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) were deployed in Dhaka since
Tuesday night, after clashes, vandalism, arson and sporadic bomb blasts were
reported throughout Bangladesh.
Policemen and Rapid Action Battalion
(RAB) were seen deployed at all key points in Dhaka.
Supporters of the
Jamaat-e-Islami and its student affiliate Islami Chhatra Shibir attempted to
block the Shewrapara road in Mirpur at capital around 6:30am. Police chased them
away. Two people were nabbed from scene, said Kafrul Police Station Officer
in-Charge Abdul Latif.
Around the same time pro-shutdown supporters and
the police were engaged in a cat-and-mouse chase in the Mirpur-1 and Bangla
College area. Witnesses say strike supporters damaged some vehicles in the area
and attacked a police vehicle in Mirpur-
A cat-and-mouse chase was also
seen in Rayerbagh area in Jatrabari (capital) around 7:00am. Two people were
held from scene, said Jatrabari Police Station Sub-Inspector Emranul
Islam.
The Islamist party extended the strike to Wednesday, after
International Crimes Tribunal-2 pronounced a life sentence for Jamaat-e-Islami
Assistant Secretary General Abdul Quader Molla.
Jamaat Acting Secretary
General Mawlana Rafiqul Islam Khan in a statement rejected the verdict as
‘politically motivated and government directed’ and said demonstrations against
it will continue .
The statement also said Abdul Quader Mollah and all
other top leaders would be freed from jail ‘through movements’.
Jamaat’s
former member Abul Kalam Azad, aka Bachchu Razakar was sentenced to death over
charges of murder, rape and loot on January 21.
The Jamaat-e-Islami has
been attacking police and unleashing vandalism and arson throughout Bangladesh
in recent weeks after their agitation against the war crimes trials intensified.
One bank employee died in Dhaka's Uttara locality on Monday night, after Jamaat
supporters set fire to a bus.
The Jan 31 shutdown by the Islamist party
was backed by BNP, but now the BNP has said it does not support the Jamaat's
demand for a repeal of the war crimes tribunals.
