Shops keep shutters down for 3 hours
About 200 shops in the city's Halishahar area remained closed for three hours yesterday in protest against attack on a local banik samity (traders' association) leader by a gang of criminals on Friday night.
Traders alleged that a gang of local criminals beat up President of Halishahar Banik Samity Shakil Ahsan Mamun, also a director of Chittagong Multi Channel Limited (CMCL), in front of his office at Boropole area at around 10:30pm as he refused pay them Tk 2 lakh as illegal toll.
They (traders) kept shutters of their shops down for three hours from 11.00am and brought out a procession on Port connecting road demanding immediate arrest of the culprits.
Witnesses said local criminals Ripon, Hares, Suman, Rubel, Selim and Bachchu, swooped on Shakil while he was about to return home.
As shop owners and employees rushed there, the criminals left the scene, they said, adding that the gang also tried to abduct him (Shakil).
Shakil told this correspondent that local criminals Ripon, Bachchu, Selim, Hares, Rubel and Suman had earlier demanded Tk 2 lakh from him, but he refused to oblige.
He filed a case with Halishahar Police Station, accusing the six of assaulting him. Officer-in-Charge (OC) Humayun Kabir said the incident was a sequel to a previous dispute between some traders and locals over establishing supremacy in the area.
The OC said they will investigate the extortion charge brought against the six by Halishahar Banik Samity President Shakil Ahsan Mamun.
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