Narayanganj, Oct 27 (bdnews24.com) — Both the current and former MPs of the area have acknowledged the military's mishandling and mistakes in purchasing land for the Rupganj housing project.
Two of the major mistakes that MP Golam Dastagir Gazi and the former MP K M Shafiullah, mentioned included display of the housing project's plan on a public website, which had apparently created panic among the locals.
Shafiullah, also a former army chief, told reporters on Wednesday that the other mistake was to have land registration suspended at the local sub register's office which further fomented people's ire.
After attending the Qul Khawani of a man who died in the recent clash of Oct 23 allegedly from law enforcers' gunshot, the ruling party's politicians said that even the local administration had not been informed about the army camps.
Mostafa Jamal died around 9am on Oct 24. He sustained critical bullet injuries during the clash. According to reports, 10 people were admitted in hospital with bullet injuries.
The law enforcers, however, denied firing on the people.
The local MP, Upazila and Union chairmen said they did not know anything about the army camps.
At least 50 people were injured in the clash between police and demonstrators who blocked the Rupganj-Ichhapura road for about four hours demanding cancellation of the government decision to acquire about 5,000 bighas (165,000 decimals).
Following that incident, the police filed a case accusing six people and some 3,000-4,000 unidentified people for vandalism, loot and arson. Moreover, RAB-11 sub-inspector Yasin Mia filed another case with Rupganj Police Station the next day.
Meanwhile, Shahar Ali, father of Abdul Ali, also known as Masud, 32, and Lehaj Uddin, father of Saidul Islam, 22, of Bariachani village under Rupganj Union, filed two general diaries with Rupganj Police Station on Tuesday.
Moreover, Shamsher Mollah, father of a youth injured in the clash, filed another complaint on Wednesday.
Local administration and the law enforcers on Wednesday asked the residents to return home assuring them that locals would not be harassed or arrested. But the law enforcers cautioned that only the instigators, who put sticks into the hands of the people, will be identified.
Shafiullah said the army set up the four camps since it was tough to take everyone to Dhaka Cantonment for scrutinising the papers.
He claimed that the army did not purchase land from anyone forcibly, rather through middlemen. "But the contractors wanted to buy the lands in a hurry for more profit, which created panic among the people."
The former army chief said, "We initiated steps to resolve the situation when I was informed that middlemen were almost minting money."
But afterwards the middlemen got together with the housing companies to compound the situation which was already quite tense. "They actually did not want a solution."
Citing of the project design covering two unions with some 300,000 people was another reason behind the panic. "It was not a wise decision to put up the project plan on a website. It was merely a plan, not the actual project."
Ruling party MP Gazi echoed Shafiuulah about the army's mistakes and blamed middlemen for the mayhem.
"People lost trust as we were late to remove the project plan from the website. We even distributed leaflets after resolving the matter."
"But the BNP supporters and the housing companies manufactured the incident by spreading confusions. It was staged to tarnish the image of the government," he claimed.
Awami League joint general secretary Mahbub-ul-Alam Hanif on Oct 25 citing a 'primary investigation' report said that the Rupganj violence had erupted just one day after the meeting at a BNP-backed local Upazila member's house.
"Thousands of people wearing tea-shirts and with sticks of the same size in their hands took to the streets," he wondered. "Khaleda Zia has taken up a confrontational stance with the army since she was asked to leave her cantonment house. Now [BNP] is trying to pit the armed forces face to face against the people and the government."
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