Cocktail panic grips Dhaka after dark as bus torched in Mirpur
As evening falls, cocktail explosions are taking place in different areas of the capital. Sometimes miscreants arrive on moving motorcycles, sometimes they throw cocktails from flyovers, and sometimes from hiding places or deserted spots, and then flee. Although such incidents are happening in succession, in most cases it is not immediately possible to identify or arrest the offenders.
According to police, in these incidents the miscreants usually arrive by motorcycle, throw a cocktail and quickly leave the scene. In some cases cocktails are also being thrown from flyovers or from hiding places nearby. Alongside the cocktail explosions, incidents of vehicles being set on fire are also occurring.
Sources said that most recently, on Saturday night (7 November), a passenger bus was set on fire in Mirpur, and cocktail explosions took place in Jatrabari, Demra, Banani and other areas of the capital. These incidents have created panic among the public.
At around 10pm on Saturday, a fire broke out in a passenger bus of Bihanga Paribahan parked under the Pallabi metro station in Mirpur. On receiving the information, police reached the spot and moved the bus to a safe place. However, no casualties were reported in the incident.
How the fire started could not be confirmed immediately. Whether it was sabotage or an accident is also being investigated.
On the same night, cocktail explosions were reported in Konapara in Jatrabari, Bansherpul in Demra, and in front of Nabi Tower, belonging to BNP leader Nabiullah Nabi, in Jatrabari.
In addition, miscreants threw a cocktail in front of the guard room of the Setu Bhaban under Banani police station and detonated it. The glass of the guard room was shattered. Banani police later reached the spot and collected the remains of the exploded cocktail. Another unexploded cocktail was also found there.
According to police, no one could be arrested in this incident either. How the miscreants arrived at the scene and how many of them there were could not be identified immediately. However, police are trying to identify those involved by reviewing footage from nearby CCTV cameras.
On Monday night (19 October), after visiting a puja mandap at the Ramakrishna Mission Ashram in Missionpara area of Narayanganj city, IGP Ali Hossain Fakir told journalists that no one would be spared, no matter how powerful the criminal. He also mentioned the police's zero-tolerance policy against drugs, teenage gangs and extortion.
DMP Commissioner Mosleh Uddin Ahmed also spoke of a firm stance against crime, saying that operations are being carried out under a zero-tolerance policy against all kinds of crime, without considering the political identity of the offender.
