Rab team comes under attack during Habiganj anti-drug drive, 4 injured

A team of Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) today came under attack by alleged drug dealers during an anti-drug drive in Madhabpur upazila of Habiganj.

Two Rab personnel, one Rab source, and an alleged drug dealer were injured in the incident which took place around 12:30pm along the Bangladesh-India border in Mehergaon area under Dharmaghar union in the upazila, Mohammad Jobaer, additional superintendent of police and company commander of Rab-14 Bhairab camp, told The Daily Star.

The injured were: Rab-14 personnel Masudur Rahman and Apan Chowdhury, Rab source Liton Miya of Sarail upazila of Brahmanbaria, and alleged drug dealer Tofazzal Hossain alias Shakil of Mehergaon village.

On confidential information, a Rab-14 team conducted a drive this noon at Shakil's residence to recover phensidyl smuggled in from India, the Rab-14 company commander said.

There, around 10-12 people, armed with weapons and sticks, led by Shakil and his father Aktar Hossain, swooped on the law enforcers, leaving the two Rab personnel and their source injured, Jobaer said.

In self defence, the Rab personnel retaliated and shot three rounds of bullets which left Shakil injured, the official said, adding that they later recovered 100 bottles of phensidyl and detained Shakil's father Aktar Hossain, while the others fled from the scene.

The injured were admitted to Brahmanbaria General Hospital and are being treated there, the Rab official also said.

Filing of a case in this connection was under way, he added.

Shakil has a bullet wound below his right knee and other injury marks on the lower abdomen and forehead, said Nazmul Haque, on-duty doctor at Brahmanbaria General Hospital.

Confirming the incident, Iqbal Hossain, officer-in-charge of Madhabpur Police Station, said there are five other cases against Aktar Hossain on charge of drug smuggling.