14 houses vandalised, looted and torched in Shariatpur

SHARIATPUR, Jan 24: Miscreants vandalised and looted 14 houses and set several on fire in Char Goyghar Village of Shoulpara Union in Shariatpur Sadar, police said.

The victims said the attacks followed the joining of some locals with the BNP. At around 10:30 pm on Friday, attackers broke into Union Chairman Abdul Mannan Bhashani's house, smashing cupboards and taking gold and cash worth about Tk 4.5 lakh. The local mosque imam, Hafiz Md Nizam Uddin, was beaten when he refused to open the door.

Idris Khan, who recently joined BNP, said his house was completely burnt by a group led by Helal Uddin. In total, more than 100 people reportedly took part, using local weapons and cocktail explosives.

Police have deployed additional forces and taken control of the area. BNP nominees Saeed Ahmed Aslam and Sardar AKM Nasir Uddin Kalu visited the site and demanded action against the perpetrators.