Attacked and lynched by mobs, Bangladesh police stay away from duty

The police in Bangladesh are running scared. Victims of attacks and lynchings, cops haven't reported to duty, turning police stations into ghost buildings and leaving people with no one to turn to in times of distress. This came in the last phase of protests and the violence that followed after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled the country. Several police stations were gutted too. A 24-hour deadline for police officers to return to their posts on Friday proved futile.

Despite Thursday's meeting between armed forces and law enforcement agencies, which decided to restart operations at all police stations within 24 hours, many stations across the country remained non-operational on Thursday, reported the Dhaka-based Prothom Alo.

After the former Prime Minister's resignation and escape on August 5, at least 76 police stations in Bangladesh were set on fire. Shockingly, a day earlier, 13 police officers, including an officer-in-charge, were beaten to death at a station in Sirajganj, as the country stepped into anarchy and lawlessness.

Concerns about their safety continued to trouble police personnel, making them hesitant to return to duty, noted the Prothom Alo report.

Following the violence, many senior and field-level police officers went into hiding.

Meanwhile, the personnel of the Bangladesh Ansar and Village Defence Force are reportedly guarding several police stations in the nation.

Since the ouster of Sheikh Hasina on Monday, the Dhaka-based Daily Star reported that Bangladesh Police saw a major reshuffle. New appointments were made to key positions, including the Inspector General of Police, the Director General of the Rapid Action Battalion, and the Commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, on Thursday.

During the meeting, various officials expressed their opinions, stating that the current state of the capital’s police stations, following the attacks, vandalism, and arson, will require time to restore operations. The new Commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) instructed officers to start working from the stations as soon as possible and urged them to at least set up basic facilities like chairs and tables to begin services.

SEVERAL POLICE STATIONS BURNT DOWN COMPLETELY

Several officials present at the meeting told Prothom Alo that many police stations had been completely burned down and there was no conducive environment to work in. Instructions were given to list the damage, including computers, police vehicles, weapons, supplies, chairs, and tables.

Meanwhile, quoting witnesses, The Daily Star newspaper reported that some police personnel in plainclothes were arriving at Rajarbagh Police Lines and signing the attendance registers. However, they are not going to their respective workplaces, such as police stations, due to security concerns, according to news agency PTI.

A BDnews24 report from Thursday said that there were signs of vandalism and looting in every police station in the capital city of Dhaka. Abdur Rahman Apu, an 11th-grade student from Dhaka, told BDnews24 that miscreants had even "stolen refrigerators and television from the police quarter behind the station."

A request has also been made to voluntarily return looted weapons, ammunition, and other equipment from various police stations to the nearest Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) office.

After the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s government on August 5, police headquarters and several important police facilities were attacked, vandalised, and set on fire. Weapons and other equipment were looted, and many police officers were injured too. Since then, police stations across the country have been largely deserted.