ASP beaten up while trying to stop extortion
Miscreants attacked an additional superintendent of police (ASP) while he was trying to apprehend two people collecting extortion from vehicles, in Narsingdi.
The incident occurred today, Saturday, at around 11:00 am near the Arshinagar railway crossing in Narsingdi town.
ASP of Narsingdi Sadar Circle, Mohammad Anwar Hossain, sustained injuries in the attack. He was sent to the Central Police Hospital in Rajarbagh in the capital after initial treatment.
Eyewitnesses and local sources said that at around 11:00 am, police apprehended two people while they were collecting extortion from various vehicles, including CNG and battery-run auto-rickshaws, at Arshinagar crossing.
A group of people then attacked to snatch the two detainees from the police. During the incident, ASP Mohammad Anwar Hossain, who was present at the scene, was also attacked.
Police said ASP Anwar Hossain of the Sadar Circle, along with eight police personnel, visited the site in Birpur area of the town where a body had been recovered in the morning.
While returning from the site, he noticed some people were collecting tolls from auto-rickshaws and CNG-run vehicles at Arshinagar crossing around 11:00 am and stopped there.
Two people were caught red-handed, after which the attackers launched an assault on the police. The assailants injured Anwar Hossain in several parts of his body before snatching the two detainees and fleeing. Several other police personnel were also injured in the scuffle.
The injured ASP was first taken to Narsingdi Sadar Hospital with the help of locals. After receiving initial treatment, he was sent to the Central Police Hospital in Rajarbagh, Dhaka.
Residential medical officer at Narsingdi Sadar Hospital, Farida Gulshanara Kabir said, “ASP Anwar Hossain received initial treatment at our hospital. We have identified blood clotting on his neck and legs. We have conducted several tests and recommended that he be admitted to the hospital.”
ASP Anwar Hossain said, “Some 30-35 people attacked me and started kicking and punching me. At one point, they hit me with a stick on my head.”
When asked about the matter, Alamgir Hossain, the lessee of the CNG and auto stand in Narsingdi municipality, said, “I have taken the lease from the municipality for Tk 2.5 million, but the Additional Police Superintendent often prevents the collection of lease fees. Previously, he also detained two of us, filed cases, and sent us to jail. If we cannot operate legally under the lease, the Tk 2.5 million paid to the government should be returned. I have heard that the scuffle occurred because the police interfered while collecting money from the road in accordance with municipal rules and the conditions of the legal lease. The allegation of an attack on the police is false and baseless.”
Notably, lessee Alamgir Hossain is the brother of district Jubo Dal president Mohsin Hossain Bidyut.
When asked whether the lessee is allowed to collect money from the road, Md Monowar Hossain, deputy director of the Local Government Division and administrator of Narsingdi Municipality, said that under this lease, money can only be collected from designated stands. There is no provision to collect money from vehicles on the road.
Regarding the attack, Narsingdi Superintendent of Police (SP) Md Menhazul Alam told Prothom Alo that legal action will be taken over the incident.