3 youths held in hospital after being shot by cops

Three young men who were shot with rubber bullets while dodging a police check-post on a motorcycle were arrested within an hour or so at Rajshahi Medical College Hospital on Saturday evening.

Police filed a case with Rajpara Police Station accusing Abdus Sobur Subho, 26, Habibullah Khan Parvez, 20, and Sarwar Hossain Tushar, 22, of “obstructing government work and driving recklessly”.

Students of Rajshahi College, Rajshahi University and Northern University respectively, they identified themselves as Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) activists, a claim refuted by Rajshahi city unit BCL President Rocky Kumar Ghosh, who visited the three at the hospital.

With bruises on the right leg, they got admitted with fake identities, Rajshahi Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Iftekhair Alam told The Daily Star.

Police in three groups spaced some 20 yards apart had set up the check-post in Kathalbaria area in Rajshahi city on a road leading to Rajshahi court area.

Dodging the first two groups, they pushed to the ground a constable in the third group blocking their path and “one appeared to be bringing out firearms from a bag”, prompting police to fire the two shots around 6:30pm, said Iftekhair.