The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) has apprehended 10 people in connection with the incident of hacking and injuring three police members in Araihazar Upazila of Narayanganj. These arrests were made at a five-star hotel in Gulshan, in the capital.
RAB conducted an operation at the hotel early Thursday, leading to the arrests.
Last Tuesday, a clash erupted between BNP and police, as well as Awami League leaders and workers, in the Panchrukhi Bazar area along the Dhaka-Sylhet highway in Araihazar. During this clash, three police members sustained injuries from hacking and beatings, while at least 20 people were injured in total.
The three injured policemen have been identified as Inspector Humayun Kabir, Assistant Sub-Inspector Md Matin, and Constable Md Nurul.
According to witnesses, Nazrul Islam, an assistant secretary of BNP's international affairs, led hundreds of leaders and activists along the Dhaka-Sylhet highway in a gathering in support of a blockade in the morning of the incident. During this demonstration, BNP leaders and workers blocked the road by torching tree trunks and tires. When the police attempted to intervene, a clash broke out between the two sides.
Subsequently, local Awami League leaders and workers joined forces with the police. When additional police personnel arrived at the scene, the BNP leaders and workers dispersed.
Abir Hossain, the Senior Assistant Superintendent of Police in Narayanganj, informed Prothom Alo that Constable Nurul is in critical condition, having suffered a head injury from a sharp weapon. Assistant Sub-Inspector Matin sustained a stab wound to his right hand and had his left hand broken during the clash, while Inspector Humayun Kabir was assaulted with sticks and bricks.
BNP contends that the police initiated the attack without cause, and resulted in the clash. BNP leader Nazrul Islam also claimed that his residence was vandalised.