'Passengers' beat driver, conductor to death 'for overcharging'

A driver and conductor of a bus was beaten to death allegedly by some passengers in Savar's Ashulia during an altercation over overcharging today, police said.

Sohel Rana Babu, driver of Itihash Paribahan, and Hridoy, 30, conductor of the same bus were declared dead at Sheikh Fazilatunnessa Mujib Memorial KPJ Specialised Hospital and Nursing College around 7:30pm, reports our Savar corresponent quoting Masudur Rahman, inspector (investigation) of Ashulia Police Station.

Masudur said they were beaten up by passengers for allegedly overcharging near Dhaka Export Processing Zone on Nabinagar-Chandra Road around 2:00pm.

Hridoy's elder brother Atiqul Islam told The Daily Star that a passenger, who got on the bus from Mirpur, engaged in an altercation with Hridoy on the allegation that the conductor demanded extra money from him.

"When the bus reached the EPZ area, 20/25 people boarded the bus and beat my brother dead on the spot. They also beat up the driver who later died at a hospital," he added.

Quoting helper Rahman, the owner of the bus, Khandaker Hemayet Hossain, told The Daily Star that the bus was going from Mirpur-14 to Chandra in Gazipur at noon. On the way, from Mirpur-1, a passenger boarded the bus identifying him as a student.

As the conductor was demanding Taka 5-10 extra on the occasion of Eid, the passenger got into an altercation with him.

When the bus reached in front of the Ashulia Police Station around 2:00pm, 20/25 people signalled the bus to stop. However, the driver didn't stop the bus. As the bus was forced to stop at a traffic signal in front of old EPZ, those people boarded the bus and assaulted the conductor and the driver, he added.

Later, the duo died in a hospital, said Rahman.