A police constable has been burned to death while two others sustained burn injuries when miscreants torched a police-requisitioned bus at Dhaka’s Bangla Motor.The bus, parked in front of the Bangla Motor police box, was set ablaze around 11:30pm on Tuesday, hours after the Opposition’s latest spell of countrywide blockade had ended.
Kalabagan police Sub-Inspector Harunur Rashid, present at the scene, said two policemen and bus’s driver were in the vehicle at the time of the arson attack.
One of them was burned to death and two others were injured.
Dhaka Metropolitan Traffic Police’s Deputy Commissioner Khan Md Rejwan named the deceased as Constable Md Ferdous, 35.
One of the injured is Constable Faijul Islam, 41, and bus driver Md Biazid, 25. They have been admitted to the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH).
A witness told bdnews24.com that he had seen two youths speeding from the scene on a motorcycle immediately after the bus was ablaze.
Salauddin Sohagh, a cultural activist, was coming towards Bangla Motor from Shahbagh.
“I heard a cracking sound and found the bus on fire. I saw two persons on a motorbike speeding towards Shahbagh then,” he said.
He said he had rushed there and saw a man in police uniform trying to get out of the bus through the window.
“I tried to pull him out but his leg got tangled with something inside the bus.”
He was finally able to pull Ferdous out after frantic efforts but the man breathed his last within minutes.
The fire has been put out and the bus towed away from the street.
It was immediately not clear who was responsible for the attack.
At least 20 people have been killed in arson attacks during the Opposition-sponsored blockades.
Two truck drivers had received burns in Dhaka’s Naya Bazar and Gazipur on Monday night in Molotov cocktail attacks. The latter died on Tuesday night at the DMCH, police said.
Seven cows were burned when the truck carrying them was attacked with homemade bombs on Tuesday at Chittagong’s Faujderhat. The truck had lost control and drove into a nearby market. Several shops, warehouse and a factory had caught fire. – bdnews24.com
