Several buses have been set ablaze and more than 50 crude bomb explosions rocked different locations across Dhaka over the past few days, according to a local media report.
Police step up security, arrest 19
NEW DELHI: A 60-year-old bus driver was burnt to death after unidentified miscreants set fire to a parked bus in Bangladesh’s Faridpur early Monday, as a series of arson attacks and crude bomb explosions were reported in Dhaka and several other districts. In another incident, a petrol bomb was hurled at a double-decker bus carrying around 35 students of Islamic University in Jhenaidah on Monday night. In Dhaka, at least two crude bombs exploded in front of Tokyo Square in the Mohammadpur area around 9:15pm on Monday. Separately, a Basumati Paribahan bus was set on fire in front of the Mirpur-11 Post Office around 9.30pm. Another bus, belonging to Basumati Paribahan, was torched under the metro rail line in Mirpur-11 around 9:15pm. Amid the attacks, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) set up 160 additional checkpoints at key locations across the capital on Monday and deployed more personnel to prevent further incidents. DMP Deputy Commissioner (Media) Akhter Hossain told The Daily Star that police had arrested at least 19 people in the preceding 24 hours in connection with recent blasts and attacks. The attacks come amid heightened political tensions in Bangladesh following the July 2024 uprising that led to the ouster of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina.
No casualties were reported. In Gazipur’s Kaliakair upazila, two parked buses were set on fire in the Chandra area along the Dhaka-Tangail highway, The Daily Star reported. Crude bomb explosions were also reported from several parts of Dhaka, including Banasree, Mohakhali, Dhaka University campus and outside the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court. He said many of those arrested were linked to the Awami League, whose activities are currently banned, reported The Daily Star.
Police said they were yet to identify those responsible. The bus, named Diganta, was travelling towards the university campus when the attack took place in the Dragon Bagan area of Shailkupa upazila. No one was injured. The vehicle was gutted, temporarily disrupting traffic. Firefighters brought the blaze under control. More buses torched in Dhaka, Savar and Gazipur The incidents came amid a wider spate of arson attacks and crude bomb explosions across Bangladesh. In Savar, two buses parked along the Dhaka-Aricha highway were torched in the Genda and Baliarpur areas around 1am and 4am, respectively. One was used to transport garment workers, while the other belonged to Itihash Paribahan. The fires damaged the buses’ seats and interiors. In Dhaka, a Lovely Paribahan bus was set on fire beneath the Farmgate metro station in the evening. Police in Savar also suspected the involvement of the banned Awami League in the two bus arson incidents there. Investigations were under way to identify those responsible. The Awami League’s activities were subsequently banned, and authorities have alleged links of some of its leaders and activists to recent incidents of crude bomb explosions and vehicle arson. You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.
In Bogura district, a van carrying jute sacks was set on fire on the Dhaka-Bogura highway in Sherpur upazila on Monday evening. Six buses were set on fire in Savar, Dhaka and Gazipur on Monday, according to The Daily Star.
The deceased, identified as Md Kalachan Sheikh, was sleeping inside a bus belonging to Kishore-Tanay Paribahan near Goalchamat New Bus Stand when it was set on fire, reported Bangladesh Daily New Age (Bangladesh). Firefighters rescued him and took him to Faridpur Medical College Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.