Chattogram mayor warns city turning ‘unsafe’ after BNP candidate shooting

Shahadat Hossian visits injured BNP candidate Ershad Ullah at hospital, says attackers were “professional killers”

Chattogram Mayor Shahadat Hossain has warned that the city is gradually becoming “unsafe” as the national elections approach, following the shooting of BNP candidate Ershad Ullah.

He spoke after visiting the injured candidate at Evercare Hospital in the city’s Quaish area around midnight on Wednesday.

Shahadat said, “The city was safe for a long time. Over the past month, we have seen it gradually turning unsafe.”

He suggested that a group might have carried out the attack to delay the election process.

The visit came hours after Sarwar Babla, a police-listed “top criminal”, was shot dead during Ershad’s campaign at Chalitatali under Bayezid Bostami Police Station on Wednesday evening.

Ershad and three others were wounded in the shooting.

Speaking at the hospital, Shahadat said: “The police’s Detective Branch, Special Branch, and the government intelligence agencies DGFI and NSI surely have intelligence reports. They should act accordingly.”

He urged the Election Commission to ensure safety for all candidates. “We believe the Election Commission must take this seriously because Ershad is a candidate.

“All candidates must be able to campaign freely. The commission must ensure that.”

“To make the election free, fair, neutral, and festive, the criminals must be arrested,” he added.

Shahadat, a physician by profession, said: “I visited Ershad. The bullet entered the left side of his abdomen and exited from the right. He is now in the HDU. I spoke with him.”

The mayor described the injury as “risky.”

“He has undergone stenting and has a pacemaker. For a pacemaker patient, this is extremely risky,” he said.

He also mentioned another critically injured activist. “Another one, Shanto, a leader of Swechchhasebak Dal, is fighting for his life. His condition is very critical. The bullet entered from the left side, tore through his vocal cord, and got stuck there. The doctors removed it. I thank them -- they worked very professionally and skillfully. But he’s still not out of danger and remains in the ICU.”

Commenting on the attack, Shahadat said: “I’ve seen the video. It’s impossible to carry out such an act in a crowd of so many people unless it was done by professional killers. The way he was shot calmly at the back of the neck shows clear expertise.”