50 injured in BNP factional clash over setting up extortion racket

At least 50 people were injured Friday night in a clash between two factions of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its affiliated organizations over dominance and extortion in the Puran Bazar area of Chandpur.

The violence broke out around 6 pm in the Bou Bazar neighborhood, with both groups engaging in hours of chase and counter-chase. The clash resulted in the vandalization of several shops, local authorities said.

Police and army personnel were deployed to the scene and brought the situation under control.

According to local residents and law enforcement, the two factions had been in dispute over extortion and territorial control. Though leaders had promised to resolve the issue peacefully, tensions escalated Friday evening.

Witnesses said more than 200 men, armed with sticks and locally made weapons, launched a surprise attack on one group, led by local BNP leaders Rob Miji, Rana Miji, and Shafik Miji. Many people were beaten and hacked, resulting in severe injuries.

The emergency department at Chandpur‍‍`s 250-bed General Hospital reported that 35 of the injured received treatment there.

One of the injured, Mohammad Alam Khan, joint convener of the BNP’s youth wing Jubo Dal in Chandpur’s Ward No. 2, said the clash began when Rob Miji and his son Rana demanded extortion from a local resident and assaulted him. When a youth tried to intervene, a physical altercation followed. Though community elders had assured a resolution, the situation worsened later that evening.

"Rob Miji and his associates brought outsiders armed with weapons and vandalized shops in our area," Khan said. "When we tried to stop them, around 40-50 of us, including women, were beaten and injured," he said. 

Officer-in-Charge Alamgir Hossain Roni of Chandpur Model Police Station said that the police are taking legal action against those involved, based on complaints filed.

No arrests were immediately reported.