30 hurt, 20 houses damaged in clash

At least 30 people, including four policemen, were injured and 20 houses damaged in a clash between two rival groups at Fukra village in Saltha upazila in the last two days.

Police opened fire to bring the situation under control and detained seven people in connection with the incident.

The injured were taken to Nagarkanda Upazila Health Complex and Faridpur Medical College Hospital.

Locals said there was a longstanding conflict between Haider Shikder and Kawser Matabbor of Fukra village over establishing supremacy in the locality.

As a sequel to the conflict, Lal Mia, a supporter of Haider, locked in an scuffle with Ruhul Mollah, a supporter of Kawser, at Fukra Bazar around 8:00pm on Tuesday. At that time, Lal Mia sustained injuries.

After the incident, the supporters of the two rivals attacked each other with lethal weapons, leaving 10 people from both sides injured.

On information, police rushed to the spot and fired 27 rubber bullets and six teargas shells to bring the situation under control.

Yesterday morning, the two groups again clashed with lethal weapons, leaving 20 people injured. Twenty houses were also damaged. Police later fired five rubber bullets and 18 teargas shells to bring the situation under control.

Four policemen were also injured during the incident, said Md Delwar Hossain, officer-in-charge of Saltha Police Station.

Saltha Upazila Nirbahi Officer Md Maksudul Islam and Additional Superintendent of Police FM Mohiuddin visited the spot, said the OC.