Jamaat-Shibir burns Palli Biddut Office at Kansat

Palli Biddut head office at Chapainawabganj was attacked by Jamaat-Shibir terrorists last Thursday. Abdul Awal, an employee of Palli Biddut, who managed to survive the fire set by Jamaat-Shibir, continues describing the destruction as he sat on the ruins and had a small piece of bread as his lunch, “then we fled without any belongings. When we came back, there was nothing left. They had looted everything. Whatever they couldn’t take, they burnt. Not even my kid’s toys have survived. No one is bothered about whether we have any money, has eaten anything or have any place to stay.”

For three days, 58 thousand subscribers of Palli Biddut of 15 unions of Chapainawabganj are without any electricity. Irrigation of boro rice has been severely interrupted. Buses are not running. Shops are closed down. Employees of the Biddut Shomiti at Kansat, Chapainawabganj has the worst of it.

Shomiti has informed, damage done by Jamaat-Shibir is worth about 200 crore taka. No one can tell when electric connections will be active again. Nothing has survived in the offices. When the board chairman of Palli Biddut Brigadier General Moin Uddin came to visit last Friday, there was not even a chair for him to seat on.

Investigation of the spot reveals total destruction. The iron gate of the office was gone, so were the glasses and grills of the windows. Everything was looted by Jamaat-Shibir. Employees said, they were under police protection for three days after the attackers left. They had set fire on the three story office building. Everything has burnt down. The storage of the shomiti is behind the building where fire had damaged the iron, aluminum and copper. A transformer was seen to be smoking even after two days.

Rezaul Karim, an officer of Shomiti told, there was about 110 crores worth of goods in the storage. Nothing could be saved. And the damage in the office building, waiting room and in the five residential buildings is about 90 crore taka. About 40 motorbikes, a car and a pickup have been burnt. More losses were yet to be estimated.

Fire had burnt several mango trees. Only ashes remain in the quarters. Rezaul Karim said, they only managed to save their lives.
Lineman Rezaul Haque was searching for surviving items in the ruins. He said, I had just finished my prayer. My wife was about to serve food and asked me to bring water from downstairs. When I went downstairs, I saw they were setting fire on the motorbikes near the main gate. I brought mine inside the house. After a while they came to our quarters. I hid in the toilet with my wife and five year old child. When I realized they were burning the building, we managed to escape by begging them to let us out of the building. Then we crossed over the barbed wire fence and hid in a wheat field near the river. We could see our house burning from there. Five to six hours later, at seven, Fire Service came. When the fire was under control, there was nothing left. We had no shelter for the night. It was just like 1971. My wife and kid took shelter in one of my son’s classmate’s house. I am staying here. I had three thousand taka in my office drawer. Now everything is gone.

Kamruzzaman, a member of the Ansar Force said, “Nine of us were in Mess. They locked us from the outside and then set fire to the room. We begged for our lives through the windows. After sometime someone opened the door. Terrorists were entering the residential area like tidal wave. We hid our rifles and fled somehow.

Storage keeper Abdul Hamid’s son is attending SSC examination this year. All of his books has burnt. Not even his admit card has survived. Mr. Khalilur Rahman’s eldest son’s certificates have been burnt too. His younger son’s certificate was found outside, in the water.

Expressing anger, employees said, Jamaat -Shibir had started their destruction from noon, but police didn’t show up till later. Fire Service came at evening.

When the employees went out for food yesterday during lunch hour, no shops were open. Someone managed a piece of bread and it was divided between eight to ten people.

Situation at Kansat was not back to normal even yesterday. No vehicles were seen at the streets except for one or two local vehicles. The road was red from crushed bricks.

1. http://www.prothom-alo.com/detail/date/2013-03-03/news/333446

2. http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=271146