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Panic spread among the general people as arson, crude bomb attacks and vandalism by unidentified miscreants continued in the capital Dhaka and elsewhere in the country on Thursday despite heightened security measures taken against the Awami League-announced ‘Dhaka lockdown’ on the day.

The presence of leaders and activists of the Awami League, activities of which are now banned, was not seen anywhere, except in Faridpur and Gazipur, to enforce their ‘Dhaka lockdown’ announced through social media amid an International Crimes Tribunal move against ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina and her aides.

The Sheikh Hasina-led AL regime was ousted from power in a student-led mass uprising on August 5, 2024. Hasina fled to India on the day. The ousted prime minister and her aides are facing crimes against humanity charges in Bangladesh.

Security had tightened throughout the day since Thursday morning at the ICT which on Thursday set November 17 for delivering the verdict in the case against Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan, and detained former inspector general of police Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun over atrocities committed during the July uprising in the past year.

Activists of political parties, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, were seen positioned at key points across the capital to resist the enforcement of the ‘lockdown’.

Besides the army troops deployed in aid of the civil administration since Hasina’s fall, 14 platoons of Border Guard Bangladesh were deployed in Dhaka and adjoining districts to maintain law and order.

Panic spread among the general people and less-than-usual traffic was seen on the city streets on Thursday as more vehicles were set on fire, and crude bombs were exploded near several offices in early hours of Thursday.

However, no casualties were reported in these  incidents, according to the police.

Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha reports: home adviser retired Lieutenant General Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury on Thursday said that the law and order in the country was stable.

‘There is no major problem; we have taken immediate action regarding minor incidents, which are being investigated and linked to a banned party,’ he told journalists at the Bangladesh Secretariat in the capital.

Unidentified miscreants set fire to at least eight more vehicles in Dhaka, Shariatpur, Munshiganj, Tangail, Jashore and Gopalganj on Thursday, said Rozina Akhter, duty officer of the Fire Service and Civil Defence control room.

In Dhaka, a bus parked in Mirpur DOHS area was set on fire at about 12:15am, according to the fire service.

The bus was burnt before the fire service extinguished the fire after 20 minutes of effort.

In another incident, a human hauler parked in front of the capital’s Kamalapur railway station was set on fire at about 2:45am.

A group of people on Thursday afternoon vandalised and set fire to the AL’s abandoned central party office in the capital’s Gulistan area.

Different organisations, including Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of Jamaat, July Joddha Sangsad and Inqilab Mancha held sit-ins in front of the party office, which has been left abandoned since the July uprising.

Miscreants allegedly vandalised and grabbed the central office of Workers Party of Bangladesh, a partner in the AL-led alliance, on Topkhana Road in the capital between Wednesday night and early Thursday.

In Barisal, miscreants set fire to the BNP office at ward number 4 of Guthia Bazar at Ujirpur upazila, at about 1:00am, ¶¶Òõ¾«Æ· correspondent in the district reported.

In Tangail, a bus in Rawail area was set on fire at about 2:30am.

In Munshiganj, a truck and a Pajero car were set on fire in Gazaria area at about 3:30am.

In Jashore, unruly people set fire to a Rahin Paribahan bus near Uposhohor Park on Jashore-Magura road in the district town on Thursday, United News of Bangladesh reported.

In Gopalganj, a pickup van parked in front of the public works office in the district was set on fire at about 4:45am.

Dhaka’s usually congested roads were eerily quiet since the morning on Thursday with traffic was reduced to less than half its normal volume while many educational institutions remained closed anticipating political unrests.

The number of public transport vehicles and long-distance passenger buses appeared to be somewhat lower than usual on several routes.

Gazipur district Juba League activists demonstrated in support of the ‘lockdown’ by burning tires on the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway in Sreepur’s C&B area early Thursday, the UNB reported.

Vehicular movement on the Shariatpur–Dhaka route remained suspended from 6:00am to 8:00am after AL leaders and activists blocked the Padma Bridge–Bhanga Expressway at Jazira, ¶¶Òõ¾«Æ· correspondent in Shariatpur reported.

During the blockade, a truck was set on fire, a police van was attacked and vandalised, and crude bombs were hurled. The police later detained three suspects.

Besides, traffic movement on the Dhaka–Khulna highway remained halted for about four hours till 10:30am due to a blockade over the AL programme.

The police recovered 32 petrol bombs on the Dhaka-Khulna highway at Mansurabad at Bhanga upazila of Faridpur district on Thursday, the UNB reported.

Meanwhile, the Detective Branch of the police arrested 43 more AL leaders and activists in the past 14 hours till Thursday morning, from different parts of the capital over flash processions.

DMP deputy commissioner for media and public relations Muhammad Talebur Rahman told ¶¶Òõ¾«Æ· on Thursday night that a huge number of law enforcement personnel were deployed to tackle any untoward situation following the announcement of the ‘Dhaka blockade’.

‘A man was arrested along with two crude bombs. Besides this, no major violence occurred. The law enforcers remained vigilant throughout the day to ensure security in the city,’ he added.