N'ganj to be on fire if Niazul, others touched

Even though police were yet to find Niazul Islam, who brandished his pistol during an attack on NCC Mayor Ivy and her supporters on January 16, lawmaker Shamim Osman yesterday said Niazul was not on the run, rather he was sick and receiving treatment.  

Addressing a rally in Narayanganj city, the ruling Awami League MP from Narayanganj-4 also warned law enforcement agencies of dire consequences if any of his close aides, including Nizaul, were arrested.

“Different media outlets reported that Niazul is on the run. But he is not a fugitive. He is undergoing treatment as he is sick. Arrest those who had attacked Nizaul. Don't think about arresting Nizaul,” he said.

About a general diary filed in connection with attempting to kill Narayanganj City Corporation Mayor Selina Hayat Ivy, in which Niazul and several others close to Shamim were mentioned, the MP said the city would be “on fire if any of them were touched, let alone arrested”.

He called upon Ivy to withdraw the general diary.

Asked, acting officer-in-charge Abdur Razzaq of Narayanganj Sadar Police Station said they did not know if Niazul was sick. “He is on the run; we are trying to arrest him.”  

Police on Friday recovered the pistol of Niazul "which he lost" on January 16 when supporters of Shamim attacked Ivy and her supporters in the city's Chashara area over eviction of hawkers on Bangabandhu Road. Around 50 people were injured that day.

Apart from Niazul, Shah Nizam, another close aide to Shamim, also flaunted a gun that day.

Nizaul's brother Ripon Khan filed a general diary with Narayanganj Sadar Police Station on January 17, claiming that his brother lost the gun during the clash.