Lease dispute in Ishwardi

Pabna Correspondent :

Two youths were shot in the Padma River canal shooting incident in Ishwardi during a lease dispute.

The families and relatives of the gunshot victims, Sajib (25) and Nizam (26), cried inconsolably while standing in a human chain organised in protest against the incident.

The human chain programme was held at around 11 a.m. on Thursday in the upazila’s Saraghat Canalpara area under the banner of the riverside residents and businessmen.

The locals strongly condemned and protested in the human chain, citing the administration’s negligence and failure in the ambush incident.

Not only that, but even though the lease and collection of rent for the river channel in the Saraghat area of the Padma are legal, it is alleged that the local administration is supporting the terrorists on the other side in such activities.

In this regard, the newly appointed Ishwardi Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO), Md Moniruzzaman, said, “The allegations being made against me are completely baseless.

I am completely new and have not yet been able to understand everything properly”.

However, I hear that there is a group inside the Padma River who are causing these incidents to occupy Balumahal. I have already informed the higher authorities, including the naval police, about the matter.”

IshwardiLakshmikunda Naval Police Station OC, Md Shafiqul Islam, said, “We reached the spot as soon as we received the news on the day of the incident.

Currently, we have a patrol team in the river area. We hope that no such incident will happen again.”

It is worth mentioning that on 6 October, locals alleged that people belonging to the KhandakerSohel Group, the owner of Group on Services Limited, opened fire on the men of Mehedi Hasan, the owner of the leaseholder AT Enterprise, in a dispute over the collection of rent for the Padma canal in the Canalpara area of Saraghatupazila.

Two local youths were shot and are currently undergoing treatment at Dhaka Mohakhali Chest Medical College Hospital in critical condition.

The sudden shooting incident has caused widespread panic throughout the area. As a result, the victims’ families and locals have organised a human chain protesting against the incident.