Asia Energy staff houses in Phulbari torched

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Thousands of demonstrators took control of Phulbari on the second day of an indefinite strike yesterday, and set fire to houses of some Asian Energy employees, clamouring for ouster of the London-based company.

The agitators also vandalised the Asian Energy office and cut off road and rail links between Dinajpur and the other districts in protest at Saturday’s police actions that left at least five people dead and over 300 injured.

According to unconfirmed reports, seven people died that day when police and Bangladesh Rifles men fired on the locals demonstrating against open-pit coalmine project at Phulbari.

Meanwhile, leaders of the National Committee for Protection of Oil-Gas-Port district unit yesterday held a daylong meeting with the deputy commissioner (DC) of Dinajpur. They placed a five-point demand at the meeting that ended with no results.

The demands include the closure of the Asian Energy office, a government declaration banning coalmining in Phulbaria, compensation for the victims’ families and medical expenses for the injured, withdrawal of the cases filed so far against the protestors, and punishment to the persons responsible for Saturday’s incident.

The district administration asked the agitators to withdraw the ongoing strike and sought from them three days’ time to meet their demands. But the protestors did not agree, Dinajpur DC Tahasinur Rahman told The Daily Star last night.

Throughout the day yesterday demonstrators kept control over different strategic points across Phulbari. They took to the roads since early in the morning but no clash was reported. Hundreds of paramilitary, police and Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) men were deployed in the town.

Locals dumped logs in every several yards along a 10-km stretch of the railroad between Dinajpur and Parbatipur, severely disrupting the rail communications.

They halted the Nilphamari-bound Titumir Express coming from Rajshahi at 6:30am, and Rupsha, another express train operating between Syedpur and Khulna, at 9:20am.

The agitators also barricaded Birampur-Joynagar Road with piles of blazing tyres and timbers.

They attacked houses of some local residents, branding them as ‘collaborators’ working for the Asia Energy (Bangladesh) Pvt Ltd. At least seven houses of employees of the British company were set on fire.

Besides, a rice mill, some structures of Asian Energy and several television sets that it had donated to different local organisations were set alight.

They also allegedly beat a couple for giving rent to Asian Energy, but later the Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) rescued them.

At around noon, UNO Hassan Sarwar asked the people to call off the strike as the company has been shut down as wanted by the protestors.

Meanwhile, Ataur Rahman of Kushyapur under Birampur upazila yesterday was identified to be among the people killed in police actions. Locals claimed that six more are still missing. They are Akkas Ali, 22, Yunus Ali, 26, Bappi, 17, Pradip Roy, 26, Dulal Hossain, 25, Abdul Al Mamun, 25, Bipul Sarkar, 16, and Muhammad Saleur, 23.

Some locals expressed anger at the Dinajpur-5 Awami League lawmaker not visiting the spot yet.

“We want a government declaration cancelling the coalmine project,” said Aminul Islam Bablu, one of the district committee leaders. He said they will continue the strike until the government announces to meet the locals’ demands.

“I have already communicated the message to my superiors and now waiting for their actions,” the DC said.

“Meantime, I will sit again with the district committee leaders and try to calm them down so that normalcy returns to the locality,” he added.

A one-member committee with ADM of Dinajpur Kazi Hasan Ahmed at the helm has been formed to probe into Saturday’s killings.

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