Police have arrested nine people, including Shah Alam Mark, president of the Sammona Dokandar Samabaya Samity Limited, in connection with the attack, vandalism and alleged looting at the Radda MCH-FP Centre in Mirpur-1, Dhaka.
Two truckloads of allegedly looted goods from the health centre have also been recovered, according to the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP).
The arrests came after a group allegedly stormed the Radda MCH-FP Centre in the Shah Ali police station area at around 12:05am on Friday, armed with hammers, sticks and other locally available weapons.
According to the allegations in the case statement, the attackers scaled the centre’s boundary wall to gain entry, assaulted two night-duty security guards and tied them up.
They then smashed the main gate with hammers and brought an excavator inside the premises, the case statement said.
Using the excavator, they allegedly demolished a structure measuring approximately 28 feet by 15 feet on the eastern side of the centre, causing an estimated loss of Tk3 lakh.
Another room used for family planning services was also allegedly vandalised, along with its furniture, resulting in an estimated loss of Tk4 lakh, according to police.
The attackers also allegedly ransacked a semi-pucca room measuring around 60 feet by 17 feet that was used by the clinic’s in-charge, a doctor and the deputy clinic in-charge. Equipment and furniture inside the room were damaged, with the loss estimated at around Tk20 lakh.
The total alleged damage to the facility stands at around Tk27 lakh, excluding the value of the goods allegedly looted from the premises.
Police said Shah Alam is one of the nine people arrested in connection with the incident and that investigations are underway.
The Radda MCH-FP Centre provides maternal, child health and family planning services to residents of the Mirpur area.
