At least 15 people were injured in a violent clash between residents of two villages in Kasba upazila of Brahmanbaria on Saturday afternoon, following a dispute over lost Hajj luggage.
The incident occurred in Kadamtoli Moar area of the upazila town between the residents of Shahpur and Araibari villages.
According to local sources, an elderly person from Shahpur village travelled to Saudi Arabia this year to perform the Hajj pilgrimage, during which one of bags went missing.
On Thursday evening, she contacted a Hajj travel agency run by Mohammad Gias Uddin in Araibari village regarding the missing bag.
The Hajj agency authorities reportedly informed her that the responsibility for lost luggage lies with the passenger and that they had no scope to take action regarding the issue. This refusal led to a heated argument and a subsequent physical altercation between the two groups.
The situation escalated on Saturday afternoon when both sides, armed with local weapons, engaged in a series of attacks and counter-attacks. The violence caused widespread panic in the locality and led to a complete suspension of vehicular movement on the regional road.
Naznin Sultana, officer-in-charge (OC) of Kasba Police Station, confirmed incident and said that the clash originated from a previous dispute between the two groups.
She added that police were working to bring the situation under control.
