United News of Bangladesh

A fire erupted Saturday afternoon in the sub-store of the children’s ward on the sixth floor of the new building at Mymensingh Medical College Hospital (MMCH). The blaze started around 4:45 pm in a room storing mattresses and other materials. Six units of Mymensingh Fire Service rushed to the spot and managed to bring the fire under control within an hour. All materials in the sub-store were destroyed. Fortunately, no casualties were reported. Clash between ‘BNP supporters’ leaves one dead in Mymensingh Hospital officials said the cause of the fire is still under investigation. Dr. Zakirul Islam, the hospital’s deputy director, stated that the likelihood of an electrical short circuit in the sub-store was low, and fire service and electricity department teams are examining the origin. Senior store officer Dr. Jhantu Sarkar added that the sub-store, which keeps extra mattresses and bedsheets, is normally locked, making accidental ignition unlikely. Eyewitnesses said the children’s ward was suddenly filled with thick black smoke around 4:30 pm, causing chaos as patients and visitors hurried down the stairs. The sub-store and its contents were completely destroyed in the fire, but no injuries were reported.

A 19-year-old girl was found dead at her residence in the capital’s Mirpur area on Saturday morning. The deceased was identified as Sanjida Islam Mim, a second-year student of Mirpur (English Version) School and College and daughter of Sakhawat Mridha. Family members took her to Dhaka Medical College Hospital around 11 am after finding her unresponsive at home. Doctors at the hospital’s emergency department declared her dead on arrival. Read More: Youth found dead in Dhaka’s Kuril Her brother Sakhawat Hossain said the family found Mim unresponsive inside her room after she had locked the door from the inside. When she did not respond for some time, they broke open the door and rushed her to the hospital. The body has been kept at the hospital morgue for post-mortem examination, said Inspector Md Faruk, in-charge of the police camp at Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

Six people including three members of a family who died in a devastating fire at a multi-storey building in Dhaka’s Uttara area, were laid to eternal rest on Saturday and Friday night in Cumilla and Mymensingh districts. In Cumilla, the bodies of Fazle Rabbi, 37, his wife Afroza Begum Suborna, 30 and their child Kazi Fayaz, 3 were brought to Cumilla city where a namaz-e-janaza was held on Daroga Bari Mazar premises on Friday night. Read more: Sylhet’s Gowainghat house fire caused by short circuit, police confirm no communal link They were buried at their ancestral graveyard on Saturday morning following another namaz-e-janaza at Chiora village. A pall of gloom descended in the area over their tragic deaths. UNB Mymensingh Correspondent reports: three members of another family who died in the same fire incident in Uttara were laid to eternal rest in Ishwarganj of Mymensingh district on Friday night. They are Hares Uddin, 47, his son Rahab Chowdhury, 17 and Rodela Akter, 15, daughter of Rahab. They were buried around 10 pm following a namaz-e-janaza. Read More: House of ex-Dhaka-18 MP Habib Hasan’s brother set ablaze in Uttara

Police recovered the body of a man who remained missing since Monday from an abandoned market at Paris road in Mirpur area on Friday night. The deceased was identified as Shariful Islam Suman, 32, a mobile mechanic who used to work at Shah Ali Market in Mirpur. Mobarak Hossain, sub-inspector of Pallabi Police Station, said Suman left his home for work on January 12 and since then he remained missing. A general diary (GD) was lodged with Pallabi Police Station in this regard. After receiving information from emergency national number 999, police rushed to the spot and recovered the body. The face and head of Suman were badly damaged. The body was sent to Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital morgue. The reason behind the death could not be known immediately. Woman stabbed during theft bid dies; ‘Thief’ killed lynch-mob attack in N’ganj Whether it was a murder or an accident will be known once the post-mortem report is available, said the OC.      

Interns at Sylhet Osmani Medical College and Hospital went on work abstention on Saturday morning protesting the attack on a female intern allegedly by the relatives of a patient early Saturday. Hospital sources said an altercation ensued between some interns and relatives of a patient over treatment at No 6 ward of the hospital around 1 am.. At one stage, a relative of a patient assaulted a female intern. The hospital authorities handed three people including a woman to police over the attack. Medical services have been hampered due to the strike, forcing the relatives of some patients to go to another hospital for treatment. Read More: Justice Manik moved to ICU at Sylhet hospital following surgery Additional police have been deployed on the hospital premises to avert further trouble, said Mainul Zakir, Officer-in-Charge of Kotwali Police Station. No complaint was lodged in this connection, said the OC.

A woman was stabbed to death by a suspected thief during theft bid who was then killed in a lynch-mob attack in Rupganj upazila of Narayanganj district on Friday night. The deceased woman was identified as Amena Begum, 45, wife of Babul Dewan of Kerabo area and Mehedi Islam, 32, son of Mostafa Mia of Birabo Khalpar area of the upazila. Sabjel Hossain, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Rupganj Police Station, said Babul Dewan, a grocery shop owner of the area was constructing a concrete building and Mehedi was engaged in tile installation work of the building. At 7 pm on Friday, Amena caught Mehedi red-handed as he attempted to steal a mobile phone from her house. After being resisted, Mehedi hit Amena with a sharp weapon, leaving her injured. Hearing screams of Amena, local people caught Mehedi and beat him up mercilessly, leaving Mehedi dead. Meanwhile, Amena was taken to a local hospital where doctors declared her dead. On information, police rushed to the spot and recovered the bodies. Legal action will be taken after  investigation, said the OC.    

A fire that broke out at the home of late schoolteacher Birendra Deb in Sylhet’s Gowainghat was caused by an electrical short circuit, police said, rejecting claims of any communal link. In a statement issued on Friday night, Assistant Superintendent of Police Md Samrat Talukder said the fire started from a short circuit at the house of Birendra Deb. The fire broke out on Thursday afternoon at the house in Bahar village, East Para, under Nandirgaon Union of the upazila. The affected family claimed that goods worth Tk 60 to 70 lakh were destroyed. Meanwhile, from Thursday evening, photos and videos of the fire began circulating online. Some social media users claimed the house of Birendra Deb was set on fire for political reasons, while others spread rumors that it was due to his religious identity. In a statement issued Friday night, Sylhet District Police said a recent fire at a family home in Gowainghat was caused by an electrical short circuit. While the incident was purely accidental, the police noted that it was being circulated on social media as a communal attack. The statement added that the fire actually started on Thursday afternoon in the house due to an electrical short circuit. The fire service team later brought the blaze under control. Police have contacted the victim’s family and inspected the site, confirming that the fire was caused by a short circuit. No complaints were received from the family, and the police urged the public not to be misled. The police also urged the public not to be confused about the incident. The house belongs to the family of the late teacher Birendra Dev, and his four sons live there. His eldest son, Bikash Chandra Deb, who is also a local school teacher, said the fire started in the straw storage shed, which was attached to the main house. He added that a short circuit could have caused the fire, which quickly spread to the house. Drug-addicted grandson held for grandmother’s murder in Sylhet He further said that around noon, his wife saw the fire burning in the straw shed and the house while fetching water from the tube well. The flames spread quickly. Bikash Deb added that his family has no enemies and he has no complaints against anyone. “It was an accident and, with the help of local people, he is managing to survive despite losing everything,” he added. Nobo Kumar Singh, Station Manager of Companyganj Fire Service Station, said, “The fire likely started in the straw shed due to an electrical short circuit.”    

Health and Family Welfare Adviser Nurjahan Begum on Friday said that campaigning in favor of a ‘Yes’ vote in the upcoming referendum is a collective obligation for the state. She made the remarks while answering journalists’ questions after a discussion with district- and divisional-level health officials in Sylhet on the referendum. “Citizens do not need to understand the constitution or the difference between the upper and lower houses. What matters is explaining how the referendum will affect their daily lives and building public opinion in favor of ‘Yes’,” she said. She also warned that those opposed to elections would do everything possible to prevent them. “The more people we can engage, the more we can defeat anti-election and malevolent forces,” she added. Earlier, during the meeting with divisional health officials, Nurjahan directed all officials of the Health Department to campaign for the ‘Yes’ vote. She also suggested involving NGOs alongside government offices to support the campaign. None can destroy communal harmony in Bangladesh: Adviser Nurjahan On the sidelines, she said the opening of Sylhet District Hospital has been delayed due to staff shortages, but the issue will be resolved soon. The discussion was chaired by District Commissioner Md. Sarwar Alam and attended by Health and Family Welfare Ministry Secretary Md. Saidur Rahman, along with health officials at district and divisional levels.  

A man was killed in a clash allegedly between two groups of BNP supporters following the inauguration of an election office of an independent candidate in Dhobaura upazila of Mymensingh on Friday evening. The deceased was identified as Nazrul Islam, 40, son of Mofiz Uddin of Ramsinghpur village of the upazila and an activist of independent candidate Salman Omar Rubel.   Additional Superintendent of Police (Finance and Administration) Abdullah Al Mamun said Salman Omar Rubel went to Ershad Bazar on Friday evening to inaugurate his election office. After the programme ended and he was leaving the area, supporters of BNP-nominated candidate and BNP Joint Secretary General Syed Emran Saleh Prince allegedly attacked Rubel’s supporters, triggering a clash. During the clash, Nazrul Islam was stabbed by rivals. Locals rushed him to Dhobaura Upazila  Health Complex where doctors declared him dead. Following the incident, tension has been prevailing in the area. Independent candidate Salman Omar Rubel alleged that Prince’s supporters carried out a sudden attack from behind after the office inauguration. He demanded the immediate arrest of those involved in the killing of his supporter. BNP-nominated candidate for Mymensingh-1 (Haluaghat-Dhobaura) constituency Syed Emran Saleh Prince said he was not fully aware of the incident as he was in Haluaghat at the time. BNP leader Alamgir murder case: fourth suspect arrested in Jashore “From what I have initially heard, the incident stemmed from a family dispute. Attempts are being made to give it a political colour,” he said.  If it is found that anyone linked to our party is involved,  action will be taken, he added. Dhobaura police station  Officer-in-Charge (OC) Md Shafikul Islam said  police visited the scene and legal action is underway.

Finance Ministry Adviser Dr. Salehuddin Ahmed on Friday asked government officials to be patient regarding the new pay scale. He said the pay scale has been prepared after 10 years. “There are many calculations. A committee has been formed. They are working. After the committee submits its report, the scale will be implemented,” he said. He added that funding is the main issue and assured that there is no reason to be discouraged. Dr. Saleh Uddin Ahmed made the remarks while inspecting the Gurudaspur Upazila Mini Stadium in Natore. He was accompanied by Cabinet Secretary Dr. Sheikh Abdur Rashid, Finance Secretary Dr. Sheikh Khairuzzaman Majumdar, Secretary of the Economic Relations Division Md. Shahriar Kader Siddiqui, and other senior officials. The finance adviser also said that everyone should vote in favor of referendum. He noted that there has never been a reform in Bangladesh for the people; changes have always been party-based. Pay Commission to reveal report date soon, work continues: Dr Salehuddin He further added, “Through referendum, the political government will gain strength in the future. That is why the government is speaking in favor of public voting.” Dr. Saleh Uddin Ahmed praised the mini stadium during his visit. Natore Deputy Commissioner Asma Shahin briefed him about the facilities.