Police officers in Khulna asked not to travel alone at night
Police in Khulna district have been instructed not to travel alone at night after a police inspector was seriously injured in a knife attack by muggers in Khulna city.
The directive was issued in an official letter signed by the superintendent of police of the District Special Branch (DSB) on Friday night.
The letter said special operations were under way in Rupsa, Terokhada, Dighalia and Batiaghata police station areas in response to the prevailing law and order situation and several recent incidents. It also noted recent attacks by criminals on law enforcement personnel.
In view of the overall situation, police personnel engaged in special operations and other duties were instructed not to travel alone at night to ensure their personal safety. Unit in-charges were asked to take the necessary measures.
Copies of the letter were sent to all relevant offices and police stations under the district police.
Khulna Superintendent of Police Sarker Omar Faruk told Prothom Alo that a police inspector was seriously injured in a knife attack by muggers while returning after conducting a special operation in Rupsa police station area late on Thursday night. The inspector was returning home by rickshaw after crossing the river by ferry.
He was carrying two mobile phones and a wallet when he was attacked by muggers in front of Khulna Collegiate Girls' School. He may have tried to resist the attackers at the time. He was in plain clothes.
The inspector was sent to Dhaka in critical condition and is still receiving treatment at a private hospital there.
The superintendent of police said the restriction on travelling alone at night was imposed after the incident, keeping the safety of every member of the district police in mind.
The precaution was intended to prevent police personnel from falling victim to muggers while returning home after duty, he added.
Asked whether the directive could convey a message that the police were feeling insecure, Sarker Omar Faruk said, “Actually, this is an internal letter. We cannot include all the details in a letter. The main purpose is to ensure that no police personnel fall victim to muggers.”
Police Inspector Shah Alam, 43, was attacked by muggers in front of Khulna Collegiate School on Khan Jahan Ali Road in Khulna city at around 2:30am on Friday.
According to police sources, he was travelling by rickshaw towards the city after conducting a special operation in Rupsa upazila when three muggers intercepted him in front of the school and snatched his money and mobile phone. When he resisted, the attackers struck both his wrists with a sharp machete.
Police later rescued him and took him to hospital. As his condition deteriorated, he was transferred to Dhaka for better treatment.
Khulna district police launched a special operation on Tuesday night to arrest criminals and recover illegal firearms.
The operation began following the shooting death of Akhtar Dhali, whose son Joy Dhali had been murdered about a month and a half earlier, in Rupsa on Monday. Another man was also shot dead at a tea stall in the Formayshkhana area of Dighalia on the same day.