News Desk :
At least 50 leaders and activists of Gono Odhikar Parishad were injured as police attacked their procession at Bangladesh capital’s Shahbagh on Friday afternoon.
Police also detained at least 10 activists of the party, said the party member secretary Nurul Haque Nur.
He said that they had a pre-scheduled programme in front of Shaheed Minar in the afternoon to protest against price hike of daily essential commodities, but police and Chhatra League activists barred them from holding the rally there.
Later, he said, Gono Odhikar Parishad activists brought out a procession protesting against police interference and the procession marched towards the National Press Club.
But, the police attacked the procession from behind as it reached in front of the Dhaka Club at Shahbagh.
Police charged batons on the protesting activists leaving over 50 injured, said the party joint-convener Abu Hanif.
It was an unprovoked attack by the police as the ruling Chhatra League and Juba League activists also joined in attack the party activists, Hanif added.
The Odhikar Parishad activists then marched towards Kakrail Intersection and blocked the road there.
The party leaders there condemned the police attack and demanded immediate release of the detained activists.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Ramna zone assistant commissioner Bayezidur Rahman claimed that police did not attack the Gono Odhikar Parishad procession and that ‘it is a factional clash of the political party’.
The police officer said that there were many factions within the political party and they locked in clashes during their political programme.
Nur said that the police were spreading false information about them.
He said that they were giving ultimatum till Saturday to release their detained activists and warned that his party leaders and activists would go for voluntary imprisonment.
