Car sprayed with bullets just 200m from police outpost

A man wearing a helmet was shooting indiscriminately at a sedan parked on the road. At first, the man was shooting at the tyres and bonnets of the car. Later, he opened fire towards the man inside.

A video of the incident went viral on social media. Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) activist Muhammad Abdul Hakim, 52, was shot dead in broad daylight in Chattogram’s Hathazari on Tuesday. The video captures the incident. Although two people were seen in the video, there were a few more persons at the scene, said the eye witnesses.

The murder took place in front of the main gate of the water treatment plant at Madunaghat Bazar in Hathazari. A police outpost is located about 200 metres from the spot. In the nine-second video, a white private car is seen parked in front of the water treatment plant. At least five gunshots can be heard in the footage. Another person wearing a helmet is also seen beside the shooter, though his movements are not clearly visible in the video.

Abdul Hakim was a resident of Panchkhain village in Bagowan union of Raozan. He became active in BNP’s politics following the fall of the Awami League government in 2024. He was known to be a follower of Gias Uddin Quader Chowdhury, former central vice-chairman of the BNP. However, he did not hold any post in the party. Adul Hakim had a business of herbal products and owned a cattle firm. Besides, he started a sand extraction business last year.

Speaking to Prothom Alo on condition of anonymity, an official at the Madunaghat police investigation centre in Hathazari said the killers came on four motorcycles. The entire incident happened within four to five minutes. They fired some 10-12 rounds of bullets. After that, they fled towards Raozan. The police reached the spot within 10 minutes of the incident.

Tarek Aziz, Chattogram additional superintendent of police (ASP) in Hathazari circle, told Prothom Alo that the patrol police of Madunaghat investigation centre were deployed at Nazumia Hat. They rushed to the spot as soon as they received the news.

However, there was heavy traffic on the road due to the sound of the gunshots. Besides, the miscreants fled the scene within seconds. That is why the police could not detain the killers despite reaching the spot promptly.

Speaking to the police and local residents, it has been learnt that Muhammad Abdul Hakim was heading towards Chattogram from his firm house in his village. He was sitting beside the driver. As they reached the Madunaghat area, a group of armed people on four motorcycles started following them. Upon reaching the area near the water refinery, they opened fire towards Abdul Hakim’s car. Two people were shot in the incident, including Abdul Hakim.

Later, locals rescued and rushed them to a private hospital, where the physician on duty declared Abdul Hakim dead. The other man who was shot was identified as Md Ismail, 38, of Raozan. He is the driver of the car.

Speaking to Prothom Alo, Abdul Hakim’s brother Muhammad Parvez said his brother did not have rivalry or enmity with anybody. He was a follower of Gias Uddin Quader Chowdhury. He demanded exemplary punishment for those involved in the killing.

Meanwhile, local BNP leaders blocked the Chattogram-Rangamati road in protest of the killing. They blocked the Chattogram-Rangamati road for about an hour demanding arrest of the killers from 8:30 pm Tuesday. Hundreds of vehicles were stuck on the road as a result.

During the blockade, BNP leaders and activists set tyres on fire and took position on the road. Later, around 9:30 pm, upazila administration officials and members of law enforcement agencies arrived and assured them, after which they left the road.

Raozan police station officer-in-charge (OC) Monirul Islam Bhuiyan told Prothom Alo that vehicular movement was disrupted for about an hour due to the blockade, but traffic returned to normal soon after the protesters were dispersed.

Since 5 August, a total of 13 people were killed in violence in Raozan, 10 of which were politically motivated. Clashes between two rival BNP factions occurred at least a hundred times, leaving more than 300 people shot and injured.