Dhaka: At least 10 people were injured on Friday afternoon in Bangladesh after violent clashes broke out between law enforcers and a group of protesters identifying themselves as “July Warriors” at the Parliament premises in Dhaka just hours before the July Charter Signing ceremony, local media reported.
Confirming the development, Inspector Faruk, in charge of the Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) police outpost, said that the injured are currently undergoing treatment at DMCH.
According to a local resident, Gazi, the demonstrators gathered at Manik Mia Avenue in the capital to voice their opposition to the July Charter signing, when police intervened.
“Police suddenly began hitting us to clear the area. We were beaten indiscriminately, and several of us were injured,” Bangladeshi leading newspaper ‘The Daily Star’ quoted Gazi as saying.
The demonstrators, comprising those injured in the July Uprising and families of the deceased, initially held a sit-in at the Parliament premises on Manik Mia Avenue, insisting on not leaving until their three key demands are met
The demands included official state recognition, legal protection, and rehabilitation for their contributions to the July movement.
Reports suggest that as the protestors tried to rally and press their demands, the military and police personnel blocked them at the gate, triggering violence. The police responded with a baton charge and fired three rounds of sound grenades to disperse the crowd. Subsequently, protesters retaliated by vandalising police vehicles, including a car and a bus and setting fire to the temporary reception room, control room, and furniture installed outside the Parliament building for the July Charter Signing Ceremony.
The protestors warned the interim government, saying, “If we have to spill our blood again, the second administration will not survive either,” citing how the protests last year toppled the former Awami League government, paving the way for the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government to assume power. Security personnel, including the Army, police, Rapid Action Battalion, Border Guard Bangladesh, and Special Weapons and Tactics units, were deployed in the area to control the situation.
Bangladesh has been gripped by numerous protests and extreme lawlessness since the democratically elected government of the Awami League, led by former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, was overthrown during violent protests last year. (IANS)
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