A 35-year-old Leguna driver, Khayrul Alam, was allegedly beaten to death near Sufia Garments, adjacent to the Jatrabari fish market, following a dispute over vehicle “serial.” The incident occurred at approximately 2:45pm on Friday.
The victim, Khayrul, hailed from Kachikata Kandi village in the Sakhipur police station area of Shariatpur district. He resided with his family on the third floor of Aminul Islam Hendi’s house in Matuail Madhyapara.
Following the murder, the victim’s father, Moallem Sardar, filed a case at Jatrabari Police Station on Saturday, naming eight individuals and mentioning another four to five unidentified suspects. Police have already arrested one suspect, identified as Sohan.
According to the case statement, the conflict began around 2pm on Friday at the Chittagong Road Leguna stand on the Dhaka-Chittagong highway.
A driver named Hridoy reportedly attempted to pick up passengers out of turn, bypassing the established serial. When Khayrul objected, an altercation ensued. Hridoy allegedly threatened Khayrul, telling him to come to Jatrabari, before driving away.
When Khayrul reached the Sufia Garments stand at 2:45pm, Hridoy, along with 10 to 12 others – including Imran, Shakil, Raihan, and Sohan – viciously assaulted him. Upon seeing his condition deteriorate, the attackers took him to Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH), where the attending physician declared him dead.
Mallick Ahsan Uddin Sami, Deputy Commissioner (Wari Division), told TIMES on Sunday evening that the violence stemmed from a dispute over Leguna serials, noting that a similar incident had occurred the previous Thursday.
Jatrabari Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Mohammad Raju confirmed the initial rivalry was between Khayrul and Hridoy. The OC added that an operation is underway to arrest the other suspects and investigations are continuing to determine if there were other underlying motives.
In protest of the killing and to demand justice, Leguna drivers suspended services from Saturday morning until noon.
Extortion and rivalry
Local sources revealed that over a hundred Legunas operate daily on the Jatrabari-Chittagong Road route.
Allegations of widespread extortion have surfaced, with reports that Tk1,000 is collected monthly per vehicle in the name of Narayanganj and Wari Traffic Police, Tk500 for Siddhirganj and Jatrabari police, and Tk40 per trip for linemen.
This struggle for dominance over the collection of these fees has fueled long-standing disputes at the Jatrabari and Chittagong Road stands.
The victim’s younger sister, Asia Akter, shared that Khayrul was the sole breadwinner for a family of seven to eight members. He leaves behind a three-year-old daughter, Afowana Alam Nur.
