BCL, Jubo League clash in Barisal

A Jubo League man, in striped suit, fist-fights with a Bangladesh Chhatra League activist at the LGED office in Barisal city. The followers of the two pro-Awami League organisations clashed yesterday to keep each other out from bidding for a Tk 10 crore infrastructure development work. Photo: Arifur Rahman

A Jubo League man, in striped suit, fist-fights with a Bangladesh Chhatra League activist at the LGED office in Barisal city. The followers of the two pro-Awami League organisations clashed yesterday to keep each other out from bidding for a Tk 10 crore infrastructure development work. Photo: Arifur Rahman

The activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League and Jubo League clashed in Barisal city yesterday, each group trying to drive out the other during the submission of bids for a Tk 10 crore infrastructure development work in three upazilas.

Eight people were injured, including local photojournalist Suhad of the daily Kaler Kantha, when police and Rapid Action Battalion used batons to stop the hour-long fight.

Executive Engineer of Local Government Engineering Department (LGED), Barisal Md Ruhul Amin Khan said submissions were invited on December 31, 2014 for the Tk10 core project, involving construction of roads and culverts, and yesterday was the deadline.

The work, divided into eight segments in Wazirpur, Banaripara, and Babuganj upazilas, will be awarded to eight businesses, he told The Daily Star.

Journalists who were at the scene said some 50 activists of BCL and a dozen of Jubo League had started gathering in and outside the LGED office since the morning. The fight began when Arif Hossain, a follower of BCL BM College joint convener Moin Tushar, snatched away the tender documents from Ziaul Hasan Biplob, a Jubo League activist, they said.

They were engaged in fist fights and pelting each other with projectiles. BCL city President Md Jasim Uddin, and General Secretary Ashim Dewan took part in the clash, the witnesses said.

After intervention of the law enforcers, both groups left the LGED office and were not seen coming back to submit their offers.

The LGED engineer said they received 69 bids till 1:00pm when the submission time ended.