Arson, vandalism mark another day of blockade, hartal.

An Awami League rally at Hazaribagh in the capital came under crude bomb attack leaving local lawmaker Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh and four others injured. Meanwhile, more than 20 vehicles were either set on fire or vandalized, leaving at least five people with burn injuries, starting Tuesday night to Wednesday. The 58th day of blockade and the fourth day of 120-hour shutdown also saw crude bomb attacks on the housing quarter of magistrates and at a lawmaker’s residences. In the capital, at least five people suffered splinter injury when miscreants hurled two crude bombs at a rally of the ruling party with lawmaker Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh present, said police. Hazaribagh police officer-in-charge Kazi Moinul Islam said Taposh received minor injuries on the right leg. Humayun Ahmed, an associate of Taposh, however, claimed that six were injured in the blast. They include Dhaka City Awami League organising secretary Shah Alam Murad, Taposh’s private secretary Nasrul Hasan and Dhanmodi Awami League unit president Kamal Ahmed.

Miscreants also set fire to three passenger buses at Jurain rail gate area and Savar in the evening. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party on Wednesday said the arrest warrant on Khaleda Zia would not be able to contain the ‘mass movement, rather it demonstrated the bankruptcy of the illegal government.’ In a statement, BNP joint secretary general Salah Uddin Ahmed said party chairperson Khaleda is ‘ready to accept any sacrifice for the welfare of the country and emancipation of mass people.’ Incidents of violence were also reported at Chapainawabganj, Joypurhat, Feni, Panchagarh, and Moulvibazar districts, on Tuesday and Wednesday. New Age Chapainawabganj correspondent reported that at least nine parked trucks were torched after being doused with petrol at Koilabari Truck Terminal near Sonamasjid Land Port Tuesday late night. None was injured in the attack. Joint forces than conducted a raid and arrested 22 Jamaat and Shibir men from different areas of Shibganj upazila. On the other hand, members of Rapid Action Battalion arrested eight more activists of Shibir with 13 crude bombs and firebombs from different areas of Chapainawabganj municipality during early hours on Wednesday.

Our correspondent in Feni reported that three people suffered burn injuries when miscreants set fire to a passenger bus and a truck at sadar upazila’s Sharshdi union Tuesday night. The suspected pro-blockade enforcers also set fire to a passenger bus using petrol, which was parked in front of Hazari Bari of Ramchandrapur village on Koresh Munshi-Dagonbhuiyan regional road in Dagonbhuiyan in the district Wednesday dawn. There were no reports of casualty in the incident. The father of a Chhatra Dal leader died from cardiac attack after joint forces stormed into their house searching for his son. The deceased was Mafizur Rahman, father of Arifur Rahman. New Age Dinajpur correspondent reported that miscreants hurled petrol bomb at an empty truck at Cirirbandar in Dinajpur Tuesday night that left truck driver Jamiruddin, 38, and his assistant Swapan, 35, injured with burns. In Bogra, miscreants hurled two cocktails targeting the magistrate quarter at Joleshawri area in the town at noon, which caused panic in the area. Three to four cocktails exploded targeting the residence of JSD leader Rezaul Karim and lawmaker of Bogra-4 at Maltinagar in the town at 1100:am, while another three to four crude bombs exploded in front of Bogra Motor Sramik Union president Abdul Latif Mandal in Nishindara at noon, said ASP (media) Gaziur Rahman. In Lakshmipur, miscreants set fire to the land office at sadar upazila, burning many documents. The land office officials said that some people set fire by dousing petrol, at about 4:00am. Later on, fire service rushed to the area and ended the fire. New Age Joypurhat correspondent reported that miscreants set afire a bus standing at the district bus stand at 1:30pm.

Meanwhile, miscreants set fire to a truck carrying potatoes at Khapara area in Akkelpur upazila Tuesday night. The truck was going to Dhaka from Raikali of Akkelpur.  Akkelpur police confirmed the incident. New Age Moulvibazar correspondent reported that miscreants set a bus on fire with petrol, parked at Juri upazila bus stand in the district Wednesday dawn. Panchagarh New Age correspondent reported, quoting witnesses, that some miscreants riding on two motorbikes and wearing helmets, set on fire a bus of BRTC which was parked at Bogdujola bazaar BRTC bus stand at Boroshashi union of Boda upazila in the district, between 3 am to 3:30 am on Wednesday. At the same time and same place the miscreants torched a stationed truck loaded with timber, using petrol.  The workers of the bus and truck received minor injuries in the attacks, witnesses said. Locals quelled the flame on the bus and truck. In Sirajganj, unidentified people vandalised a truck and an auto-rickshaw at sadar upazila in the afternoon. Law enforcement agencies rounded up more than 100 opposition activists including 30 in Chapainawabganj, nine in capital, 10 in Bogra. Jatiyatabadi Juba Dal, youth front of Bangladesh Nationalist Party, will hold countrywide demonstrations on Friday and Saturday demanding withdrawal of the arrest warrant in ‘false cases’ against the party chairperson Khaleda Zia and senior vice-chairman Tarique Rahman. Juba Dal on Wednesday declared the progarmmes through a press release. Demonstrations and processions have been planned at thana and upazila levels across the country on Friday, and at districts and metropolitan cities on Saturday. - See more at: http://newagebd.net/100206/arson-vandalism-mark-another-day-of-blockade-hartal/#sthash.IsxTKc2o.dpuf