Violence has continued to occur during electioneering for the February 12 Jatiya Sangsad polls, with at least 26 people injured in Kushtia, Bhola, Teknaf and Rajshahi between Thursday and Friday.
Meanwhile, two election offices of independent candidate for the Jhenaidah-4 constituency Saiful Islam Firoz, and two local election camps of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and the Jamaat-e-Islami were vandalised in Jhenaidah and Gazipur on Thursday night.
At least 11 people were injured in a clash between the supporters of the BNP and the Jamaat while election campaigning at Pipulbaria Bazar of Daulatpur upazila in Kushtia on Thursday, New Age correspondent in the district reported.
Daulatpur police station officer-in-charge Arifur Rahman said that supporters of the BNP and the Jamaat clashed when Jamaat-nominated candidate for Kushtia-1 Maulana Belal Uddin was campaigning in the area.
At least 11 people of the both groups were injured, he said, adding that additional police were deployed to prevent any further incident.
Legal action would be taken upon receiving a complaint, he added.
In Bhola, a clash broke out at about 8:00am on Friday between the BNP and Jamaat activists at Monpura upazila over election campaigning, leaving at least eight people injured, the United News of Bangladesh reported.
Sakuchia North union secretary of Jamaat Abdur Rahim alleged that BNP members blocked their campaigning and they locked into an argument that escalated into a clash.
He claimed that five of their people were injured.
BNP leader Kamal Uddin said Jamaat activists attacked BNP members in a coordinated manner while they were campaigning, leaving three to four BNP activists injured.
Monpura police station officer-in-charge Sheikh Farid Uddin said that legal action would be taken upon receiving a complaint.
Meanwhile, bullets were fired during a campaign of a BNP candidate at Teknaf in Cox’s Bazar, leaving five people injured, including children.
Teknaf Model police station officer-in-charge Md Saiful Islam told New Age that although the gunfire occurred during the campaign, there was no indication of political involvement behind the incident.
‘The police are working to uncover the motive,’ he added.
A man and his son, both Jamaat supporters, were critically injured in an attack allegedly carried out by a ward-level BNP leader and his associates at Tanore upazila in Rajshahi Thursday morning, New Age staff correspondent in Rajshahi reported.
The injured were identified as Masikul Islam, 23, and his father Mofiz Uddin, 62, residents of Galla Schoolpara village under Badhaoir union at the upazila.
Masikul filed a case with the Tanore police station on Friday in connection with the incident.
In Jhenaidah, two election offices of independent candidate Saiful Islam Firoz, contesting from Jhenaidah-4 under the ‘Cup-Pirich’ symbol, were vandalised on Thursday night.
Kaliganj police station officer-in-charge Jellal Hossain said that the incidents took place at Nishchintapur and Helai villages of Kaliganj upazila in the district at about 8:00pm.
The police recovered an unexploded crude bomb-like object, he said, adding that eight individuals on four motorcycles carrying sharp weapons attacked Firoz’s election office at Nishchintapur.
‘Office furniture was destroyed and three motorcycles were damaged. A crude bomb-like object was thrown inside the office but it did not explode,’ he added.
Meanwhile, two local election camps of the BNP and the Jamaat were vandalised at Kapasia in Gazipur, following tensions over a political rally on Thursday night, the UNB reported.
According to local residents, the incident took place near Saldaoi Bazar while a Jamaat election rally was ongoing.
