Four police members, including an officer-in-charge (OC), and several transport workers were injured in a clash between police and workers over the election of a transport workers’ union in Chattogram on Tuesday afternoon.
The incident took place at Dulhan Community Centre in Halishahar Eidgah area.
Following the clash, angry workers blocked roads at Kadamtali and Alankar intersections, halting bus movement between Chattogram and other parts of the country for about an hour.
The election of the Chattogram Inter-District Road Transport Workers’ Union was scheduled to be held with 3,561 registered voters participating.
Workers alleged that frustration had been building from the beginning due to the limited size of the polling centre, a single entry point and delays in distributing tokens and ballot papers for such a large number of voters.
Several voters claimed they had to stand in queues for five to six hours to cast their votes. Tensions escalated in the afternoon when around 100 to 150 workers were reportedly informed that ballot papers had run out.
A dispute broke out between workers and election officials over allegations of ballot shortages and irregularities, eventually turning the situation violent.
Witnesses said police used batons and fired teargas shells to bring the situation under control. Later, angry workers threw bricks and stones at police, turning the area into a battleground.
Halishahar Police Station OC Kazi Muhammad Sultan Ahsan Uddin and three other police members were injured in the clash. They are currently receiving treatment at Dampara Police Hospital.
Chattogram Inter-District Bus Owners’ Association Secretary Monowar Hossain said several members of their observer team were also injured after being hit by bricks and stones. Some workers were injured during the chaos, he added.
After news of the clash spread, agitated workers took positions at Kadamtali and Alankar intersections and blocked roads.
The blockade disrupted traffic on key city roads and halted long-distance bus services, causing major disruption to road connectivity between Chattogram and other parts of the country.
