GM Quader's Uttara residence attacked, vandalised
GM Quader says 50 to 60 young men gathered outside his residence this morning, chanted slogans and hurled brickbats and stones at the house, damaging property.
The residence of Jatiya Party Chairman GM Quader in the capital's Uttara came under attack this morning (12 October), with protesters hurling bricks and stones at the house and damaging its windows.
Quader said 50 to 60 young men gathered outside his house on Road 33 in Sector 7, chanted slogans and hurled brickbats and stones, damaging property.
"They staged a demonstration in front of the house and attacked us, chanting slogans calling us agents of India," Quader said. He added that police arrived and brought the situation under control after being informed of the incident.
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Meanwhile, the party's Secretary General Barrister Shameen Haider Patwary demanded that the government arrest those involved in the attack on Quader's residence within 24 hours, reports UNB.
"If you do not arrest the perpetrators within 24 hours, the Jatiyo Party will launch a strong movement and protest," he said at a press conference at the party office in the city this evening.
Describing the attack as planned, Shameen claimed that a group of people had organised a procession before attacking and vandalising the house.
The attack took place because Quader had criticised the rise in prices of essential commodities, the Jatiyo Party secretary general claimed.
"We are not a banned organisation. We will speak out and engage in politics. Jatiyo Party is a legal and registered party, and it should be allowed to carry out its political programmes," he said.
Shameen also noted that the party office had been set on fire four times during the tenure of the immediate past interim government, led by Dr Muhammad Yunus.
He urged the government to ensure political coexistence, saying the party had planned to organise a long march and procession on 26 September to protest soaring prices of essential commodities and fuel, but had not been granted permission.
Earlier in the day, the group of people under the banner of "Anti-Autocracy General People" staged a sit-in on the road in front of the house at 10:40am and chanted slogans, demanding his immediate arrest.
According to witnesses, the protesters did not enter the residence but vandalised its windowpanes before leaving ahead of the police's arrival. CCTV footage also showed some protesters throwing bricks and other objects at the house.
Uttara West Police Station Officer-in-Charge Md Khalid Mansur told The Business Standard that those responsible for the attack had not yet been identified.
Police were investigating the incident, but no one had been detained, he added.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police's Uttara Division Deputy Commissioner Rezaul Karim told the media that police went to the scene after receiving reports of the attack. "The attackers had left before police arrived," he added.
