Five vehicles were set on fire in Dhaka, Munshiganj, Tangail and Gopalganj from Wednesday night to early Thursday. No casualties were reported in the incidents.
Rozina Akter, an officer at the Fire Service and Civil Defence control room, confirmed the incidents to Prothom Alo this morning, Thursday.
According to the fire service, a bus parked in front of Mirpur DOHS in the capital was set ablaze around 12:15 am. Two fire units brought the fire under control within 20 minutes, but the bus was already burnt out.
At around 2:45 am, a leguna (locally made small public transport) parked in front of Kamalapur Railway Station was set on fire. Several fire units went to the spot and doused the flames.
About the same time, another bus parked in the Rawail area of Tangail was torched. No one was inside the vehicle at the time. Firefighters extinguished the fire shortly after.
Around 3:30 am, a truck parked in front of a paper mill in Gazaria of Munshiganj was set on fire. The blaze was later brought under control.
At around 4:45 am, a pickup van parked in front of the Public Works Department office in Gopalganj was set ablaze. By the time firefighters arrived, the vehicle had been completely burnt.
Incidents of arson targeting vehicles have been reported for several days amid the “lockdown” programme announced online for 13 November by the Awami League, whose activities have been banned.