Rape by BCL Men : BCL dissolves Satkhira unit

Bangladesh Chhatra League yesterday dissolved its Satkhira district unit after learning the involvement of its president and general secretary in the rape of a girl on Wednesday night.

The central committee of the pro-government student body also urged police to take stern action against the duo -- president Sheikh Jewel Hasan and general secretary Nazmul Haque.

“Police should not hesitate to take action against the culprits as they have destroyed the image of our organisation,” HM Badiuzzaman Sohag, president of Chhatra League's central unit, told The Daily Star last night.

They would not find shelter in the party, he added. 

The 19-year-old victim, a student at Azam Khan Commerce College in Khulna, filed a case with Satkhira Sadar Police Station yesterday morning under Women and Children Repression Preventive Act against four people -- Jewel, Nazmul, Sumon and another unidentified youth.

Locals said Satkhira unit BCL leaders hired the girl, a dance artiste, to perform at a cultural function organised by them on the occasion of the 64th founding anniversary of the student body on Wednesday evening. 

The victim, who resides in Khulna, came to Satkhira with her husband to attend the function. 

But, soon after the couple started for Khulna at the end of the function around 8:30pm, the accused snatched the victim from her husband on the way, took her to a house in Katia of the town and violated her, the victim said in the case.

They threatened to kill her husband when he tried to save her, she added. 

The husband then informed police who rescued the girl from the house around 12 midnight. Police, however, failed to capture the culprits.

Officer-in-Charge of Sadar Police Station Aslam Khan confirmed the incident and said they are trying to arrest the accused.

District AL General Secretary Nazrul Islam urged local administration to take strict measures against the culprits as they tarnished the party's image.

Local AL leaders and activists have expressed their frustration with the BCL men for their involvement in various criminal and anti-social activities in the district.

Meanwhile, condemning the incident a section of the BCL brought out a procession in the evening. They demanded immediate arrest and punishment of the culprits, who are known as extortionists in the area. 

Source :

BREAKING NEWS : Sakku wins Comilla polls

Sammilito Nagorik Committee-backed mayoral candidate Monirul Hoque Sakku won the Comilla City Corporation election on Thursday, reports ATN Bangla. 

According to unofficial results, Sakku bagged 65,740 votes while his nearest contestant ruling Awami League supported Afzal Khan 35,429 in all 65 centres of CCC, the private television channel added.

Earlier, the maiden election to the CCC ended peacefully as soon as the clock struck 4. The polling began at 8:00 in the morning with voters casting their votes in the electronic voting machines.

This is the first time in the country that voters in all centres used the voting machines.

During the voting, the two front-running mayoral candidates expressed their satisfaction over the peaceful environment of the election.

After casting his vote at Hocchamia High School polling centre around 9:30am, Sakku expressed his satisfaction over the election saying, "The voting is going on peacefully and if the peaceful trend continues till the end, I will accept the people's mandate whatever it may be."

Meanwhile, Afzal exercised his franchise at Comilla Modern High School around 9:45am and left the centre showing a V-sign.

He also expressed his satisfaction over the peaceful atmosphere that was prevailing at the voting centres.
"The voting is going on tranquilly and the people are not facing difficulties while casting their votes using the EVM system," Afzal said.

A contented Afzal also said he will accept whatever the result may be.

BACKGROUND

Unprecedented security measures were taken with deployment of over 3,000 lawmen and they were seen patrolling in and around the city to ensure law and order during the polling time. They will be on election duty till tomorrow.

Election officials earlier said 1,200 Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) personnel, more than 2,000 police members, 150 members of Bangladesh Border Guard and Armed Police Battalion, 27 executive magistrates and nine judicial magistrates will work throughout the day to ensure free and fair voting.

A total of 1, 69,273 voters, including 86,074 females, are on the voters' roll to elect their first-ever city mayor from among nine candidates and 36 ward councillors, including nine reserved female councillors' seats, from among 287 contestants.

Source : 

Samson H Chy no more

Samson H Chowdhury, a leading businessman of the country and chairman of renowned conglomerate Square Group, has died. He breathed his last at a hospital in Singapore Thursday at the age of 86, Maasranga Television reports.

A recognised entrepreneur, Chowdhury was undergoing treatment for old age complexities at the Singapore hospital. He died at 10:15am (Bangladesh time), the private satellite TV channel owned by the group said in a special bulletin. 

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina expressed deep shock at the death of the veteran businessman and prayed for his departed soul. 

The Square Group and Maasranga TV, which is also owned by Square Group, have prayed for peace on Samson Chowdhury.

Born on February 25, 1926 in Ataikula area of Pabna, Chowdhury, son of a medical officer in an outdoor dispensary, started a small pharmacy there in 1952. He then ventured into a partnership pharmaceutical company with three of his friends in 1958. 

They named the company Square because, according to him, “it was started by four friends and also because it signifies accuracy and perfection meaning quality”. 

That small company of 1958 is now a publicly listed diversified group of companies employing over 28,000 people. The current yearly group turnover is $616 million, according to information available on the group’s website.

With his innovative ideas, tireless efforts and dedication, Samson H Chowdhury led Square from the front to become the leading manufacturer of quality medicine, toiletries, health products, textiles, agro vet products and information technology.

Former president of Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Chowdhury served as the chairman, of Transparency International Bangladesh during 2004-2007 besides holding a number of key positions local and international business bodies. 

The American Chamber in Bangladesh honoured him as the ‘Business Executive of the Year’ in 1998. Samson Chowdhury received the ‘Best Entrepreneur of the Country for the year 2000-2001’ awarded by The Daily Star and DHL Worldwide Express.

Source :

Peaceful Comilla polls end

Voting in Comilla City Corporation's maiden election ended peacefully as soon as the clock struck 4. 

The people who were within polling centres at the time will be allowed to cast their votes.

The voting started at 8:00am Thursday with a normal turnout. 

As time went by, the presence of enthusiastic voters was seen increasing with higher-than-expected participation of women voters, reports our correspondents covering the election. 

Earlier, two front-runner mayoral candidates - Monirul Hoque Sakku and Afzal Khan - expressed their satisfaction over the peaceful environment of the election.

The atmosphere all around the city is one of absolute festivity and the day is a general holiday in Comilla.

USE OF EVM 

Voters were seen casting their ballots through easy-to-use electronic voting machines. They did not face any difficulty in time of using the EVM, reports our correspondents. 

This is the first time in the country that voters in all 65 centres used the voting machine.

Noorchan Begum, an elderly voter, expressed satisfaction after casting her vote at Shongrish Saleha Girls' High School centre in ward No. 16 for the user-friendly method of the EVM.

She even found the use of EVM easier than the ballot paper system.

Manobendra Roy, the presiding officer of Islamia Adarsha High School centre, told our correspondent that no one in his centre faced any types of difficulty during voting using the EVM. 

CANDIDATES CAST VOTES

Sammilito Nagorik Committee-backed mayoral candidate Monirul Hoque Sakku cast his vote at Hocchamia High School poll centre around 9:30am and left the centre showing a V-sign.

After casting his vote, Sakku expressed his satisfaction to reporters saying, "The voting is going on peacefully and if the peaceful trend continues till the end, I will accept the people's mandate whatever it may be." 

He said, "If the Election Commission had launched its initiatives a bit earlier to make the voters accustom with the use of EVM it would have been better." 

He also exchanged greetings with the voters who were standing in queues at the centre.

Meanwhile, Awami League-backed mayoral candidate Afzal Khan exercised his franchise at Comilla Modern High School around 9:45am and left the centre showing a V-sign.

He also expressed his satisfaction over the peaceful atmosphere that was prevailing at the voting centres.

"The voting is going on tranquilly and the people are not facing difficulties while casting their votes using the EVM system," Afzal said. 

A contented Afzal also said he will accept whatever the result may be.

BACKGROUND

Unprecedented security measures were taken with deployment of over 3,000 lawmen and they were seen patrolling in and around the city to ensure law and order during the polling time. They will be on election duty till tomorrow.

Election officials earlier said 1,200 Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) personnel, more than 2,000 police members, 150 members of Bangladesh Border Guard and Armed Police Battalion, 27 executive magistrates and nine judicial magistrates will work throughout the day to ensure free and fair voting.

A total of 1, 69,273 voters, including 86,074 females, are on the voters' roll to elect their first-ever city mayor from among nine candidates and 36 ward councillors, including nine reserved female councillors' seats, from among 287 contestants.

Source :