5 BNP men shot and injured in Raozan amid ongoing factional clashes
Five activists from the BNP and its affiliate wings were injured after being shot by assailants in Chattogram's Raozan upazila late last night (5 November).
The attack occurred at around 11:45pm in Chowdhury Para area in the Koyepara village, under Ward 7 of Bagoan Union in the upazila.
Locals told The Business Standard that a group of assailants opened fire before fleeing the scene in a car. However, the motive behind the attack remains unclear.
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The injured were rescued and immediately taken to Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH). Sub-Inspector (SI) Alauddin Talukdar of the CMCH Police Outpost confirmed that the five victims were brought to the hospital at around 12:30am and admitted for treatment.
The five victims, all reportedly affiliated with the BNP, were identified as Abdullah Sumon, 45, general secretary of Raozan Upazila Sramik Dal, Mohammad Ismail, 50, vice president of Bagoan Union Krishak Dal, Khorshed Alam Chowdhury, 50, joint convener of the local Sramik Dal unit, Robiul Hossain Rubel, 35, vice president of the Jubo Dal unit, and Mohammad Sohel, 38, a BNP activist.
Attempts to contact Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Raozan Police Station Monirul Islam Bhuiyan and Assistant Superintendent of Police (Rangunia Circle) Mohammad Balayet Hossain, were unsuccessful.
The incident underscores the high level of political volatility in Raozan, which has been plagued by extreme factionalism within the local BNP. Raozan's BNP politics are currently dominated by a bitter rivalry between two major factions — one led by BNP Chairperson's Adviser Golam Akbar Khandaker and the other by the party's Vice Chairman (currently suspended) Giasuddin Quader Chowdhury.
Since the July Uprising on 5 August last year, Raozan has witnessed a total of 17 murders, 12 of which were reported as politically motivated. Factional clashes between the two BNP groups have occurred over a hundred times, leaving more than 350 people injured by gunfire and leading to the filing of over 50 cases.
