The extortion, looting and encroachment by  the  BNP-backed forces that have allegedly  suddenly emerged in various villages of Lakshmikunda, Salimpur, Muladuli and Sahapur unions of Ishwardi since August 5 have not stopped yet. 

 

As a result, the common people of the concerned villages have not yet regained their peace.  A protest was organized by the local BNP at Rooppur Futu Market in Pakshi union on Monday afternoon. 

 

As part of the post-Eid mass mobilization, Pabna District BNP Joint General Secretary Zakaria Pintu spoke as the chief guest at the protest meeting. 

 

Former legal secretary of Ishwardi Upazila BNP Adv  Shamsuddoha Jami presided over  and it was  moderated by Shahanuzzaman Sena.  BNP leaders Ahsan Habib, Fazlur Rahman and Humayun Kabir Dulal among others spoke at the meeting. In his speech as the chief guest, Zakaria Pintu alleged that a central leader of BNP is the patron of that force.

 

 The members of the alleged force formed in his shelter are starting from extortion to occupying cropland and market places. The common people have become hostages. People are suffering from insecurity. Due to these misdeeds, people are not able to breathe a sigh of relief. 

 

At least twenty victims, including two victims with the initials 'S' and 'T', have given a brief picture of the anti-people activities of the alleged force on condition of anonymity. Those victims, who did not receive any assistance from anywhere, complained to journalists that they have not seen any relief even after the fall of the fascist government. They complained that after the resignation of the Hasina government, an armed terrorist force suddenly formed with the help of an influential leader known as the sponsor of that force attacked and shot at us, looting and vandalizing 20/30 of our houses. They hit and injured our wives and children. 

 

They looted about 75 maunds of wheat, cash worth 2 lakh taka and gold jewelry in the cupboard. They looted cows, goats, poultry and chickens. They looted 25 goats, voter ID cards, and land documents from one house alone. The complaint on behalf of the victim villagers requested various journalists to publish the news in their newspapers and said that we are fed up with the atrocities of the alleged terrorist force on the people living in the char area of Ishwardi. 

 

Since August 5, members of the force have looted about 100 cows, 200 goats, about 20 houses, 15 shops and business establishments belonging to ordinary people. They have forcibly harvested the crops of about 200 bighas of land belonging to ordinary poor people. They have forcibly occupied about 200 bighas of land. They have openly carried out exercises in the villages with firearms and 20/25 motorcycles. They are also openly involved in selling drugs. They have made it compulsory to pay extortion to live in the area. Already, more than 2 crore taka has been collected from 53 and various contractors and interpreters of the nuclear project. They have occupied various markets in a terrorist manner.

On the other hand, about 20,000-21,000 people live in Charkurlia, Chargargari, Charkatra and Ghafuria, four villages in the remote Laxmikunda union, about twenty kilometers away from Ishwardi city. 

 

Most of the villagers here are farmers and are used to living a normal life. These people have been living in fear for the past few days. Locals, who did not want to be named, said that armed miscreants have regularly attacked homes and shops in these villages, vandalizing, looting and beating innocent people. There have also been fierce gun battles with the villagers on several occasions. In these incidents, at least eight to ten people, including BNP leader Nunnu Biswas, were shot and injured in various ways and have been receiving treatment at various hospitals including Rajshahi Medical College Hospital. After visiting the area for several days, they spoke to the local residents and shared their frightening experiences. In Chargargari, Charkatra and Ghafuria, a terrible panic has spread among housewives and children. Due to this, many men in the area have fled their homes for their own safety. Taking this opportunity, miscreants have entered most of the houses in the villages and vandalized them, looting cows, buffaloes and other goods. Buffaloes from the houses of the householders have also been looted and picnics have been held. While walking on the roads inside the village, it can be seen that the fences of some houses have been cut, the tin roofs have been torn off and several shops are in a state of disrepair. In some houses, women have taken shelter inside the houses and there are no men outside. The expression of panic is also clearly visible on the faces of the children in the village. When asked, one child said, "We cannot go to school because they have threatened us and prevented us from going on the way to school.

 

 On  Friday at  1:30 pm, a group of miscreants attacked several shops at Ansar Mor with sharp weapons, vandalizing and looting the shops." Bina Khatun, the wife of the victim, Chanaullah, said, "On Friday afternoon, during prayers at the mosque, an armed group of about 30 to 40 people entered their house and vandalized and looted. At that time, they opened fire to spread panic and looted a few cows from the cowshed. Also, on Tuesday evening, the family members of Baktarpur farmer Nurunnahar were shot by terrorists. Again, on Wednesday afternoon, a person named Shyamal was beaten with a hammer and his hands and legs were broken by the miscreants over his alleged involvement in the EPZ's fake business. Later, four people were arrested from Shaheed Para. Apart from this, several people were injured in several terrorist attacks and exchange of fire between Jamaat and Awami-backed BNP in Lakshmikunda.

 

 Due to the strong stance of the police in these incidents, the terrorists could not advance. After these incidents, the looters recovered four cows and returned them to their owners, according to the police station police. The villagers, who were fed up with the atrocities of the suddenly created force members.

 

He sought the cooperation of the relevant high-ranking officials of the government for living in a peaceful environment in his own home and for exemplary punishment of the misdeeds.