2 journos shot as cops open fire on protesting locals in Chattogram

Two journalists have sustained bullet injuries after clashes erupted between police and angry residents in Chattogram's Bakalia area over the attempted rape of a four-year-old child.

The injured journalists are Mamun Abdullah and Nobel Hasan, both reporters of local daily Chattogram Pratidin.

The incident took place around 5pm on Thursday at Abu Jafar Road in Chairmanghata under Ward 19 of Bakalia Police Station when hundreds of residents gathered demanding that the suspect be handed over to them.

Chattogram Pratidin publisher Ayan Sharma said that Mamun sustained a bullet wound to his waist, while Nobel was shot in the hand and leg while broadcasting live from the scene.

"They were initially rushed to Chattogram General Hospital. As their conditions deteriorated, they were shifted to Chattogram Medical College Hospital (CMCH)," he added.

According to police, an employee of a local decoration shop lured the child into the shop and attempted to rape her. As news of the incident spread, outraged residents rapidly gathered and besieged the building where the suspect was hiding.

Upon receiving the information, Bakalia police and senior officials from the Chattogram Metropolitan Police (CMP) rushed to the spot. Though initially barred from entering by the angry crowd, police managed to detain the suspect inside the building.

However, when officers placed the accused into a police vehicle to transport him to the station, the mob surrounded the vehicle and blocked all exit routes, demanding the suspect be handed over to them.

To disperse the crowd and regain control, police launched a baton charge (lathi-charge) and fired blank shots. In response, the mob pelted stones and brickbats at the law enforcers, triggering a violent chase and counter-chase.

CMP Deputy Commissioner (South Division) Hossein Mohammad Kabir Bhuiyan said, "We rushed to the scene immediately upon getting the news. The child was rescued and sent to the One-Stop Crisis Centre (OCC) at CMCH."

"Despite our assurances that the accused would face the severest legal punishment, the agitated crowd tried to take the law into their own hands and blocked our vehicle. Police had to take action to bring the situation under control", he added.