Police and the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) will lodge separate cases against individuals involved in obstruction and an attack during a footpath eviction drive in the capital’s Mirpur 10 area.
DNCC Administrator Safiqul Islam Khan Milton told journalists this on Wednesday after arriving at the spot following clashes over the eviction operation.
The DNCC administrator made the remarks after a clash broke out during an eviction drive in Dhaka’s Mirpur-10 area on Wednesday, during which three city corporation garbage trucks were set on fire and a police vehicle was vandalised.
Milton affirmed that the programme to keep footpaths free from encroachment to ensure the unhindered movement of city residents will continue. He said that police will file a case against those who created anarchy during the programme, while the DNCC will also lodge a separate case.
An investigation will be launched to identify and arrest those involved in the attack and in obstructing the drive, Milton said, emphasizing that no one will be permitted to illegally occupy footpaths. He noted, “It has been proven today that the general public of Mirpur wants the footpaths freed from illegal occupation.”
The administrator added that the attackers had pre-planned the incident, gathering people to create a volatile situation in an attempt to thwart the eviction drive. Allegations of attacks on city corporation vehicles, journalists, and police personnel will also be probed.
Milton alleged that “miscreant” traders associated with the Awami League carried out the attack to heat up the situation, assuring that legal action will follow once those involved are identified through investigation.
He further warned that legal action would be taken against anyone attempting to reoccupy freed footpaths at anyone’s instigation.
DNCC Executive Magistrate Marufa Begum Nely, who led the eviction drive, said that a crowd was gathered to heat up the situation during the attack, leaving several people injured. She asserted that the city corporation’s drive against illegal occupation will continue every day.
