Rampant extortion sparks 4hrs strike

Bus owners at the capital's Mahakhali terminal yesterday suspended operation of their vehicles for four hours, demanding the arrest of extortionists in the area.
The disruption caused huge sufferings to several hundred people rushing home ahead of Eid. The strike was withdrawn around 9:00pm after police arrested an extortionist, Nasir, at Mahakhali. Nasir is a local criminal, said police.
Kamran-ur-Rashid, managing director of Ananya Paribahan, a bus operator, told The Daily Star that Nasir's gang had been extorting them over the last two months.
Yesterday afternoon, the gang vandalised four to five makeshift ticket counters under the Mahakhali flyover and looted money when the ticket sellers refused to pay, he said.
Kamran lodged a case with Banani Police Station last night.