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Published : 07 Mar 2025, 02:47 PM
Police have fired tear gas and charged batons to break up a rally by banned organisation Hizb ut-Tahrir at the Baitul Mukarram National Mosque.
Scores of Hizb ut-Tahrir members gathered and forced their way past a police barricade at the north gate of Baitul Mukarram on Friday after Jummah prayers.
Clashes erupted and blasts could be heard in the chaos.
As soon as the Jummah prayers ended on Friday, Hizb ut-Tahrir members gathering at the north gate of the mosque began shouting slogans.
They grabbed banners with a Kalima written on it and surged forward when a group of 10 police tried to block their way. The Hizb ut-Tahrir members overwhelmed them before another group of police from Paltan tried to block them and also failed.
Police began swinging batons and firing tear gas at the rally when it reached Bijoynagar, forcing the activists to flee into nearby alleys, kicking off chases.
Shahriar Ali, deputy commissioner of Motijheel police, said: “The clashes have ended. Police charged batons and shot tear gas at the rally. Several people were detained. Traffic has returned to normal.”
Sushobhan Arko, a correspondent of Dainik Kalbela, was injured when a sound grenade exploded on his belly and was rushed to the hospital.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police had already issued an alert regarding the Hizb ut-Tahrir programme. On Friday, the Police Headquarters said in a statement, "Hizb ut-Tahrir is a banned outfit. According to the law, all of their activities are punishable offences."
The Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime, or CTTC, unit of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police have also arrested three members of Hizb ut-Tahrir. They were taken into custody from Uttara Sectors 11 and 12 around midnight on Thursday. The arrestees were named in a case filed with the Uttara West Police Station under the Anti-Terrorism Act.
On Friday, police, Rapid Action Battalion and army personnel took position near the gates of the Baitul Mukarram mosque around two hours before the Jummah prayer.
Security personnel conducted searches on bags carried by Muslim devotees coming to the prayer, while asking about their identities and also collecting other information.
The RAB and policemen were equipped with airguns, shotguns, and other riot prevention gear. Water cannons and armoured vehicles have also been kept ready in the vicinity.
