Blame game reappears

02 October, 2012 Tuesday

170 arrested: 3000 sued so far

Blame game reappears

Govt, opposition blame each other for Ramu violence

Staff Reporter 

The government has so fararrested 170 persons in connection with the Ramu violence, besides suing over 3000 persons for taking part intorching Buddhist temples and vandalizing village homes.

Police and law enforcingpersonnel are patrolling the Ramu, Ukhia and Patya violence hit areas and thegovernment has started taking steps to return the affected people to newshelters. A Committee has been formed to find out the reasons and persons whohave planned and carried out the violence, administration sources said.

Western Marine Ship Builders havemeanwhile kept their Chittagong dockyard closed Monday following the arrest 2oworkers of a sub-contractor who is working for the builder.  

Meanwhile, Home MinisterMohiuddin Khan Alamgir said he believed Rohingya refugees from Myanmar may haveinvolved in the reckless attacks on the Buddhist temples and village homes totrigger the worst communal violence involving the country's Buddhist community.

The incidence flared up with theposting of anti-Muslim photo on  theFacebook by a local Buddhist youth who is now in the hiding since  the violence vandalized the Ramu Upazila andsome adjoining areas of the Cox's Baxar district.

The Home Minister who visited theviolence hit area with Industries Minister Dilip Barua who also hails from the Ramu area said, law enforcers haveso far arrested 93 people in Cox's Bazar and 73 in Chittagong till Monday inconnection with the violence.

The Home Minister said thegovernment has report indicating  thatRohingyas are involved with the violence in Ramu and Chittagong. "Thegovernment is aware of the Rohingya link," he said replying to a question.

The law enforcers are keepingvigilance including over the areas housing Rohingya refugee camps, he said.

On Saturday night's violence mobdestroyed 12 Buddhist temples

and monasteries and more than 50houses in the Ramu upazila. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, now in New York attending the U.N. GeneralAssembly sessions called for tough measures to prevent further attacks onminority communities, the minister said.

Police arrested nearly 170 peopleon Cox's Bazar and Chittagong areas on suspicion of vandalism and aninvestigation was ordered into the violence. Selim Md Jahangir, Superintendentof Police (SP) of Cox's Bazar said that 93 people have so far been arrested. Ofthe arrestees, 32 were from Ukhia, 22 from Teknaf, 8 from Ramu and 18 fromSadar upazila of Cox's Bazar, said SP.

Police arrested four more in Ramuupazila headquarters Monday noon while they were preparing to stage a protestagainst the arrests.

Meanwhile, at least 2000 peoplewere sued in several cases filed with Patiya Police Station on charge ofvandalising two monasteries and a Hindu temple, our Chittagong correspondentreport said.

Priest Dipananda of KolagaonSarbojanin Ratnangkur Buddha Bihar in Patiya lodged one case accusing 450people with specific allegations against 25, who were already arrested Saturdaynight.

Two other cases were filed byJakir Hossain and Kamal Uddin, both sub-inspectors of Patiya Police Station,accusing 1,500 to 2,000 people  withspecific allegations against 54.

Section 144 is in place in theviolence hit areas. The situation is now calm in presence of police, RAB, BGBand Army personnel patrolling. Meanwhile, the Western Marine Shipyardauthorities (ship builder co) have declared a one-day leave to workers forMonday following the arrest of

of its 26 workers in connectionwith the Ramu violence.

"It is a temporary measureas 20 people working for a subcontracting were arrested on Sunday in connectionwith violence," said a company manager. 

BNP lawmaker Lutfur Rahman Kajalrepresenting the Ramu area  on Mondaydenied allegation by Home Minister Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir that he had fuelledviolence in Ramu. It is totally "baseless and politically motivated,"he said.

He cleared his position yesterdayat a press conference Monday morning held at Cox's Bazar town. He toldreporters that when visiting Ramu, the Home Hinister did not label anyallegation against him. He discovered it only on his return to the capital,Lutfur said. 

"I tried to quell theviolence. The situation worsened because police  were outnumbered by the mob, he said.

"Outsiders, anti-socialyouths dominated, the objectives may have been to vandalize homes," hesaid adding he is always in good term with the Buddhist community.