The angry workers also damaged houses of factory owners and 50 vehicles and about 200 of them were injured in a series of clashes, witnesses said.

Mohammad Kamal, machine operator of Pantex Garments Factory at Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) estate at Panchobati, took a bullet in the abdomen when police fired on agitating workers. The 25-year-old man was pronounced dead at Dhaka Medical College Hospital at about 7:30am.

Law and order spun out of control giving way to four hours of anarchy in town when a few thousand workers went on the rampage in and around Panchobati.

The left-leaning 11-party of Narayanganj has called a half-day hartal in the district for Wednesday to protest the killing and violence that also prompted schools to post signs of children's institutions on their walls and residents to close doors and windows.

About six platoons of Bangladesh Rifles rushed to the town to wrest back control and witnesses said an uneasy calm descended on the town by the evening.

Police were locked in violent running battles with the incensed garment workers, armed with stones, iron rods and lethal weapons, in different places before the BDR personnel entered the town by noon.

Police fired about 200 bullets with 303 rifles, 7.62 rifles and shotguns to disperse the marauding crowds.

Blood, glass shards, stones and brickbats littered the scenes where about 20 people were hit by bullet during the clashes, unheard of for years in town.

"In my 45-year life, I've never ever seen such a violent protest. The town exploded into mindless violence and chaos," Mohammad Yunus, a banana vendor at Chashara told The Daily Star.

Nearly one lakh workers, who work in 250 knitwear factories in the BSCIC compound, were incensed yesterday morning on hearing the flying rumour that six of their colleagues were shot dead by police.

The industrial town was completely cut off from the rest of the country by road until 2:30pm as transport operators ceased to run their vehicles amid the fog of violence.

Witnesses said the trouble erupted when police arrested labour leader Mahbubur Rahman Ismail of Samajtantrik Sramik Front and Bangladesh Samajtantrik Dal after tripartite negotiations between the local district administration, striking employees and the owner of Pantex broke down early yesterday.

Immediately after the arrest, garment workers burst into violent agitation and police used bullets, teargas and batons in a brash effort to rein in control at about 5:30am.

Runa, a worker of Pantex, claimed that some of his colleagues were picked up by police from the scene.

She alleged that one worker, Masud Rana, was thrown out of the second floor during the clash.

Pantex workers' work abstention, in support of their 18-point demand including fixing work hours from 8:00am to 5:00pm and prayer breaks, entered its fourth day yesterday.

They said factory authorities stopped supplying water for ablution and locked the factory mosque over the last few days. Garment owner Abdul Majid denied the allegations.

Narayanganj NDC Belayet Hossain said three magistrates went to Pantex at about 11:00pm Sunday and convinced the striking workers to begin work.

He said Ismail went to the factory some time later and gave a rabble-rousing speech with intent to withdraw from the talks.

The NDC said the factory owner filed a written complaint with Fatullah police accusing Ismail of demanding Tk 5 lakh to defuse tension.

Ismail said officials of district administration called him to BSCIC at about 11:30pm Sunday and they continued talks until 3:00am yesterday.

"As we failed to reach any amicable solution because of the owner's rigidity, the talks broke down and police took me to Fatullah Police Station," Ismail said.

The workers marched to Fatullah Police Station in their thousands and snatched Ismail triggering another round of violence in which police fired 70 gunshots and used baton. The violence soon spread like conflagration turning the whole town into a virtual battlefield.

Five of the injured -- Sumi Akhter, Amir Hossain, Shafiqul Islam, Nasir and Akbar -- are being treated for bullet wounds at the DMCH.

An emergency meeting of the leftist alliance at the district office of Bangladesh Samajtantrik Dal, with president of district Communist Party of Bangladesh Montu Ghosh in the chair, worked out the hartal from 6:00am to 2:00pm.

The alliance will also take part in the namaz-e-janaza of Kamal in front of the Municipal Corporation Library in town today. Central alliance leaders from Dhaka will also join.