Garment worker injured in attack during Gazipur protests dies

A garment worker who was critically injured in an attack during protests in Gazipur over demands for a minimum monthly wage of Tk30,000 has died.

The deceased, Toufiq Hossain, 21, was from Dakshin Chhaygharia village in Kochashahar union of Gobindaganj upazila, Gaibandha. He died at around 10am on Tuesday, 3 November, at Shin Shin Japan Hospital in the Banglabazar area of Gazipur.

Toufiq lived in a rented house in Banglabazar in Gazipur city and worked in the cutting section of Laila Styles Limited.

Eyewitnesses and family members said a group of people beat him severely on Monday while protests were under way, leaving him critically injured. Workers taking part in the demonstration rescued him and admitted him to hospital. He died on Tuesday morning while receiving treatment in the intensive care unit.

Asked about the incident, Belayet Hossain, additional commissioner of Gazipur Metropolitan Police (GMP), told the media on Wednesday morning that Toufiq had been taking photographs and videos of vandalism by protesters when they attacked him.

However, protesting workers and the victim’s family alleged that unidentified attackers had beaten him.

A friend who was with Toufiq at the time told the media on Wednesday that he had died after being assaulted by people hired by a garment factory.

According to police, workers were protesting for higher wages outside Noman Textile Mills Limited in the Bahadurpur area under Joydebpur Police Station at around 2pm on 2 November.

At one point, a group of people allegedly tried to vandalise the factory. Local residents and factory workers intervened, triggering a chase and counter-chase between the two sides. Toufiq was critically injured during the incident.

His family members later rescued him and admitted him to Shin Shin Japan Hospital in Uttara, Dhaka, where he died while undergoing treatment.

Toufiq’s uncle, Bacchu Mia, said he had moved to Dhaka after his father’s death to help support his family. He found a job at Laila Garments through a friend. Toufiq had been living in the Banglabazar area for five years.