Footpath recovery drive will go on, accomplices of fascism behind attack: DNCC administrator
Photo: Collected
Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) Administrator Md Shafiqul Islam Khan has announced that the drive to recover footpaths will continue even after the incidents of clashes, fire and vandalism during a footpath eviction drive at Mirpur-10 in the capital.
He said this while visiting the eviction drive at Mirpur-10 on Wednesday. The DNCC administrator said the programme to free the footpaths from occupation will remain ongoing. He claimed that during the eviction drive, the people who had been occupying the footpaths, and others at their instigation, carried out attacks on the city corporation’s vehicles, journalists and several police officers.
Shafiqul Islam Khan said the attackers were forced to flee in the face of resistance from local ordinary people. The programme to recover footpaths will continue in order to give city dwellers the opportunity to move about unhindered.
He further said that after a fire broke out from an electrical short circuit during the eviction drive, three garbage trucks of the city corporation were set on fire. Alongside this, an excavator and police vehicles were vandalised. He alleged that anarchy was created by setting fire to a mosque in a planned manner.
The DNCC administrator said cases will be filed against those involved in the incident. Cases will be filed on behalf of the police and also on behalf of the DNCC. He also said steps will be taken to identify those involved through investigation and arrest them.
He said the ordinary people of Mirpur want the footpaths free of occupation – today’s incident has proved that. If attempts are made again in future to occupy the footpaths at anyone’s instigation, legal action will be taken against them.
Thanking the local people for cooperating in the eviction drive, he said the work of freeing the footpaths from occupation is being done in line with the people’s demand and it is the moral responsibility of the city corporation.
Shafiqul Islam Khan said legal action will also be taken over the attack on journalists. He also said journalists were assaulted while the eviction drive was being conducted and many of those involved in the incident have already been identified.
The DNCC administrator further said he is a son of Mirpur and is aware of the situation in the area. He also remarked that activities such as occupying footpaths will not be allowed to continue and ‘direct action’ in this regard will continue.
