Hartal largely peaceful on second day

Except for some stray incidents of violence, yesterday's dawn-to-dusk hartal called by Jamaat-e-Islami was largely peaceful.

The presence of pickets was thin.

Even though no inter-district bus operated yesterday, the first day of this year, a significant number of public transport was seen on the streets of the capital and other metropolitan cities.

Police detained at least 60 people, including 37 Jamaat-Shibir men, from Rajshahi, Satkhira, Jhenidah and Dinajpur on suspicion of carrying out subversive activities, report our correspondents.

Jamaat on Tuesday called the nationwide dawn-to-dusk hartals for Wednesday and yesterday, protesting the death sentence of its leader ATM Azharul Islam for war crimes.

The strike on Wednesday was observed peacefully as well.

In the capital, a local bus was set ablaze after hartal supporters threw a petrol bomb at it around 9:45am yesterday and fled, said Rafiqul Islam, officer-in-charge of Darus Salam Police Station.

Locals brought the fire under control and no one was injured, he added.

A lesser number of private vehicles plied the capital's streets yesterday compared to Wednesday. Additional policemen were deployed at important points to prevent attacks.

In Narayanganj, Jamaat activists torched a bus and vandalised another one near Okto Office area around 11:00am.

The pickets fled as soon as police went to the spot, said Asad-Uz-Zaman, officer-in-charge of Fatullah Police Station.

In Rajshahi, five people were hurt after Jamaat-Shibir men exploded six crude bombs in Moni Chattar area around 10:30am, reports our Rajshahi correspondent.

The bombs exploded when police tried to disperse the Jamaat-Shibir men who were demonstrating blocking a road, said Iftekhair Alam, assistant commissioner of Rajshahi Metropolitan Police.

Police also fired around 100 rubber bullets, tear gas shells and sound grenades, our correspondent added.

Hartal supporters also blocked another road in front of Shaheed AHM Kamruzzaman Central Park in the city in the morning.

Later, police cleared the road dispersing the protesters. Five Shibir activists were detained from the spot, said Alam.