Three miscreants on motorcycle carried out attack on police in Ashulia, witnesses say

Three assailants took part in an attack in which a policeman was killed and another injured at Ashulia, in Savar, say witnesses.

The attackers fled on a motorcycle after the attack on the police check post in Barhoiparha area on the Dhaka-Tangail Highway around 7:45am on Wednesday.

Industrial Police-1 Deputy Director Kawsar Shikder, who was in-charge of the area, said the attack aimed at snatching the arms the policemen were carrying.

Witnesses said the miscreants launched the attack with sharp weapons immediately after stopping the motorcycle at the check post.

Constable Mukul Hossain died in the hospital while another constable, Nur-e-Alam Siddique, was in critical condition.

Additional Inspector General Jabed Patwari told reporters at the spot that he suspected it was a planned attack.

“The attackers were trained,” he said.

He also said the incident was linked to similar attack on a check post in Gabtoli last month, in which Assistant Sub-Inspector Ibrahim Molla was killed.

Police strengthened security after the murder of two foreigners in Dhaka and Rangpur. They set up check posts at key points.

Police said Molla was knifed while frisking the miscreant on Oct 22. The attacker came on foot, police said.

In the attacks on Italian aid worker Cesare Tavella in Dhaka and Japanese farmer Kunio Hoshi in Rangpur, the miscreants came on motorcycles and used firearms.

But the police attackers used sharp weapons.

‘3 attackers against 5 cops’

The check post at Barhoiparha, near the gate of amusement centre Nandan Park, was set up to stop mugging.

The place is crowded when the park is open, but it becomes deserted at night and early morning.

The area, unlike other places in Bangladesh, is not so densely populated.

Industrial Police Deputy Director Shikder, however, said the attackers were seven to eight in number and they came on several motorcycles.

Many witnesses said there were three attackers and they came towards the check post from Kaliakair on a motorcycle.

One of the witnesses, requesting anonymity, told bdnews24.com that the motorcycle was stopped at the signal by the policemen.

They started hacking Constables Mukul and Alam randomly when they went to check them.

Mukul and Alam ran away and entered an adjacent restaurant, but two of the attackers chased them and hacked them again.

“I left the place when the two policemen entered the bushes next to the restaurant,” the witness said.

According to him, the attackers were aged between 30 and 35.

Another witness, who runs a tea stall beside the restaurant, said he saw two others on another motorcycle but they did not take part in the attack.

The attackers fired blank shots before fleeing towards Nabinagar on the two motorcycles.

Industrial Police Inspector Md Nasim said police suspected it took three to four minutes to carry out the attack.

“The attackers came on one motorcycle but their associates were waiting on another motorcycle,” he said.

The witnesses said three other policemen at the check post ran away when Mukul and Alam came under the attack.

One of the three was injured when he fell in a drain while fleeing.

The locals then took Mukul and Alam to a nearby clinic.  Police later took them to Enam Medical College Hospital where the doctors declared Mukul dead.

The locals said Mukul could have survived if his companions took him to the hospital immediately.

Doctor SM Rafikul Islam said Mukul died of extensive bleeding.

The three other policemen at the check post were constables Pinharul Islam, Imran Aziz and Apel Mahmud.

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, while visiting the injured, told reporters that he ordered Inspector General of Police AKM Shahidul Hoque to investigate why the policemen did not open fire during the attack.

ASP Nazmul Hasan Kiron said they were investigating negligence of duty on the part the policemen.