GM Quader’s house in Rangpur attacked

The residence of Jatiya Party Chairman GM Quader in Rangpur city's Senpara area was attacked last night.

The attackers smashed windows and set fire to a motorcycle parked on the premises, JP has claimed. The incident occurred around 8:45pm, reports Prothom Alo.

Jatiya Party Co-chairman and former Rangpur City Corporation mayor Mustafizur Rahman alleged that activists of the National Citizen Party (NCP) and Students Against Discrimination (SAD) were behind the attack.

"There is no rule of law in the country ... if there were, such an attack wouldn't have taken place. We'll observe the situation closely and make a decision soon."

Quader went to Rangpur from Dhaka in the afternoon and spoke to journalists at his residence. He left for the party office, around half a kilometer away, around 7:00pm.

In protest of his visit, SAD announced a rally and a sit-in around 7:30pm, branding him as an "Awami League ally".

According to eyewitnesses, around 80 to 90 demonstrators -- allegedly affiliated with SAD -- marched through key streets of Rangpur before converging at Grand Hotel Mor. They then moved towards Quader's residence, after which the attack reportedly took place. The group later proceeded towards Rangpur Press Club.

SM Yasir, general secretary of Rangpur city Jatiya Party, said, "We were at the party office when we heard that protesters, including members of the NCP and another political group, attacked our chairman's house … We want to practise peaceful politics, but those who lit this fire in Rangpur today [yesterday] will not be able to extinguish it easily."

Meanwhile, Imtiaz Ahmed, convener of SAD's Rangpur city unit, denied the allegations in a Facebook post.

He wrote they had been peacefully marching to demand action against GM Quader, whom they described as a supporter of fascism, when JP activists attacked them. He added that a scuffle broke out, but they did not attack the residence, reports Prothom Alo.

He was, however, unreachable when journalists tried to contact him later for further comments.

Following the incident, Mustafizur and several JP leaders, including SM Yasir, staged a sit-in in front of the house.

Around 9:45pm, both police and army personnel arrived at the scene.

Rangpur Metropolitan Police Commissioner Majid Ali said law enforcers were trying to restrain both sides.

Ataur Rahman, officer-in-charge of Rangpur Kotwali Police Station, said, "We have deployed police to control the situation. The situation is currently under control."

As of filing this report, no arrests had been made in connection with the incident, he added.