Jessore

50 hurt as police swoop on Bhabadah protesters

At least 50 demonstrators, including Bhabadah Movement Committee adviser Iqbal Kabir Jahid, were injured at Swadhinata Chattar in Nawapara industrial town yesterday as police swooped on the agitators demanding immediate solution to Bhabadah water stagnation problem.

Witnesses said protesters of Bhabadah Movement Committee were observing a sit-in programme on Jessore-Khulna Highway placing their six-point demand. After the sit-in programme, police swooped on the agitators as their procession led by Iqbal Kabir Jahid reached at Swadhinata Chattar around 11:30 am.
‘Police charged baton on the agitators without any provocation,’ protesters alleged.
Meanwhile, Shahid Abu Sarwar, additional superintendent of police, said some agitators were wounded as the police charged baton to disperse the protesters. Injured Iqbal Kabir Jahid said over 100 people were wounded in the police action. Twenty of them rushed to local hospitals, he said.
The committee announced fresh agitation programme yesterday, he added.
The programmes include sit-in agitation on the premises of Water Development Board office on October 13 and demonstration in front of National Press Club for October 17.
Chaitanya Kumar Paul, member secretary of Bhabadah Movement Committee, said they also submitted a memorandum to the deputy commissioner of Jessore on September 8 over the matter.
The demands are — engaging of four more floating excavators for removing silts from the river bed at Bhabadah point, starting of tidal river management project at Beel Kapalia, making linkage between Amdanga Canal and Rajapur Canal, establishing link between Mathabhanga and Bhairab rivers, providing food security to affected people and rehabilitate them and halting recovery of loans paid by different NGOs at the Bhabadah affected areas.

Jessore

50 hurt as police swoop on Bhabadah protesters

At least 50 demonstrators, including Bhabadah Movement Committee adviser Iqbal Kabir Jahid, were injured at Swadhinata Chattar in Nawapara industrial town yesterday as police swooped on the agitators demanding immediate solution to Bhabadah water stagnation problem. Witnesses said protesters of Bhabadah Movement Committee were observing a sit-in programme on Jessore-Khulna Highway placing their six-point demand. After the sit-in programme, police swooped on the agitators as their procession led by Iqbal Kabir Jahid reached at Swadhinata Chattar around 11:30 am. Police charged baton on the agitators without any provocation, protesters alleged. Meanwhile, Shahid Abu Sarwar, additional superintendent of police, said some agitators were wounded as the police charged baton to disperse the protesters. Injured Iqbal Kabir Jahid said over 100 people were wounded in the police action. Twenty of them rushed to local hospitals, he said. The committee announced fresh agitation programme yesterday, he added. The programmes include sit-in agitation on the premises of Water Development Board office on October 13 and demonstration in front of National Press Club for October 17. Chaitanya Kumar Paul, member secretary of Bhabadah Movement Committee, said they also submitted a memorandum to the deputy commissioner of Jessore on September 8 over the matter. The demands are engaging of four more floating excavators for removing silts from the river bed at Bhabadah point, starting of tidal river management project at Beel Kapalia, making linkage between Amdanga Canal and Rajapur Canal, establishing link between Mathabhanga and Bhairab rivers, providing food security to affected people and rehabilitate them and halting recovery of loans paid by different NGOs at the Bhabadah affected areas.