A bus rammed into a three-wheeler at Baghabari on the Bogra-Nagarbari highway in Sirajganj yesterday that left five people killed.

Officer-in-charge Khaza Golam Kibria of Shajadpur Police Station said the bus heading for Dhaka hit a CNG-run autorickshaw around 12:30pm when its driver lost control over the steering.

Two people died on the spot while three others died while being taken to Shajadpur Upazila Health Complex, the OC said.

Hatikumrul highway police and Shajadpur police rushed to the spot and seized the bus but its driver had fled.

The deceased were identified as Md Abdur Razzak, 45, Sirajul Islam, 32, Touhidur Rahman, 28, Arifa Begum, 26, Shamim Hossain, 34. They were all in the autorickshaw, police said.

Despite the government's ban on three-wheelers plying the highways, there is no sign those are staying off the highways. Three wheelers, including those that are outright illegal, regularly ply the Bogra-Nagarbari highway, locals said.

Superintendent of Police of Sirajganj Miraz Uddin told The Daily Star that while three wheelers are not permitted on the highways, most people defy the ban. “Highway police have been directed to stop the movement of the three wheelers on highways,” he said.