Police yesterday arrested 12 relief seekers on ground of violating emergency rules as around 500 of them brought out a procession demanding relief materials in a cyclone-affected outlying village of Barguna.
Legal steps would be taken against the arrestees upon completion of primary interrogation, said Sohrab Ali, officer in charge of Barguna Sadar Police Station (BSPS).
Speaking with The Daily Star, he added, “No one has the right to bring out any procession breaching the state of emergency — regardless of his or her demand.”
The arrestees — Zakir Hossain, 28, Harunor Rashid Master, 40, Abdur Rahman, 36, Sushanta, 38, Tuhin, 32, Humayun Kabir, 35, Rubel, 26, Manik Roy, 42, Zakir, 26, Abul Kalam Azad, 37, Monjurul Haq and Jasim Uddin — are from different villages of Gourichanna union under Barguna sadar upazila. They were being detained in custody at BSPS at the time of filing this report at 6:00pm.
Police and locals said over 500 people affected by Cyclone Sidr brought out the procession as they did not receive any aid since the disaster. Police arrested the 12 after intercepting the procession near Jomaddar Bari while they were on their way to submit a memorandum to the deputy commissioner’s office in the district headquarters.
Rest of the protesters later held a sit-in on the road and began an indefinite hunger strike demanding release of the arrestees.
The protesters called off the demonstration after district officials and Navy personnel assured them of release of the arrestees and distributed 10 kg of rice to each of them.
Tags: Bangladesh, Bangladesh Economy, Caretaker Government, Cyclone, Economy
Categories: Bangla, Bangladesh, Bangladesh Economy, Bangladesh News, Daily Bangladesh News, Economy, News
