48 Arrested in Comilla Following Pro-Awami League Protest on Dhaka-Chittagong Highway
Photo Collected
Authorities in Cumilla have filed charges against 208 individuals under the Anti-Terrorism Act following an unauthorized protest march on the Dhaka-Chattagram highway. The demonstration, organized under the banner of the outlawed Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL), prompted a swift police crackdown that resulted in the arrest of 48 suspects, all of whom were ordered to be held in judicial custody by a senior judicial magistrate on Monday.
The arrests began Sunday afternoon when police intercepted a group of activists in the Matiara area of Cumilla’s Sadar South upazila. Officers later conducted follow-up raids to apprehend three additional suspects. While officials noted that several of those detained are minors, police maintain that preliminary interrogations confirm the group’s active affiliation with the BCL.
According to the case filing submitted by Sub-Inspector Ahsan Habib of the Sadar South Model Police Station, the demonstrators were accused of holding a protest to support and encourage the activities of a banned organization. The charges allege that participants chanted anti-government slogans and engaged in provocative activities intended to undermine state security and public order.
Investigators have identified former Member of Parliament and Cumilla Metropolitan Awami League President A.K.M. Bahauddin Bahar, District BCL General Secretary Md. Israfil Piyas, and District Awami League Secretary Ehteshamul Haque Bhuiyan as the alleged financiers and orchestrators of the protest. Efforts to reach the three men for comment were unsuccessful as they did not respond to repeated phone calls.
The demonstration occurred Sunday afternoon when hundreds of BCL supporters blocked the Chattagram-bound lane of the highway. Witnesses reported that participants chanted slogans calling for the return of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina before police intervened and dispersed the crowd.
Police confirmed that the investigation remains ongoing to identify and capture the remaining 150 to 160 individuals named as unidentified suspects in the case. Law enforcement teams are continuing operations across the region to locate those who managed to flee the scene.
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