DHAKA:
Polling stations were set on fire in Bangladesh on the eve of Sunday’s general election, while four people, including two children, were killed in a train fire in what the government described as arson aimed at democratic values.
Friday’s fire broke out at around 21:00 (15:00 GMT), injuring eight passengers as it spread across four compartments of the Benapole Express bound for the capital, Dhaka, at a time when the main opposition party is boycotting the election.
“The timing of this tragedy, just a day before the elections… shows an absolute intent to obstruct the celebration, safety and security of the country’s democratic processes,” Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen said.
“This reprehensible incident, undoubtedly orchestrated by individuals with malicious intent, strikes at the heart of our democratic values,” he added in a statement, pledging that the authorities would bring the perpetrators to justice.
Bangladesh’s main opposition Nationalist Party (BNP) has asked citizens of the South Asian country to stay away from the polls and called a two-day nationwide strike starting Saturday.
The eight people seriously injured in the fire are being treated in hospital, officials said.
“All eight, including two children, have burns in their respiratory tract,” said Dr Samanta Lal Sen of a state-run specialist burns hospital in the capital.
Also read: Shrinking democratic space in Bangladesh
“We are watching them closely,” he told reporters.
It took seven firefighting teams an hour to douse the fire in Dhaka’s Wari area, fire official Shahjahan Sikder said.
Second boycott in three elections
The poll boycott by the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) is the second in three elections. The party says Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League is trying to legitimize a fraudulent vote to win a fourth consecutive term.
Hasina, who has refused demands from the BNP to step down and hand over power to a neutral authority to hold elections, accuses the opposition of inciting anti-government protests that have rocked Dhaka since late October and killed at least 10 people.
A senior BNP official, Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, said Friday’s express train fire was “undoubtedly an act of sabotage and cruelty” while blaming the ruling party for it.
Four people died last month in a train fire set by protesters during a nationwide strike called by the opposition.
On Saturday, the normally busy streets of Dhaka were largely deserted, although security forces patrolled in armored vehicles.
Some 800,000 security officials will guard polling stations on Sunday, while some of the armed forces have been deployed across the country to help keep the peace.
Read: Bangladesh deploys army to keep peace ahead of Sunday’s election
Police said unknown arsonists also set fire to at least five primary schools, including four polling booths.
They are investigating the fires in Ghazipur, on the outskirts of Dhaka, which they suspect were started at midnight by those aiming to disrupt Sunday’s election.
“We have stepped up patrols and remain on high alert,” said Gazipur police chief Kazi Shafiqul Alam.
Arsonists also attacked polling stations in the northeastern districts of Moulavibazar and Habiganj, police said, while similar incidents were reported elsewhere in the past two days.
Police in the coastal district of Khulna arrested two people on Thursday night who are accused of trying to set fire to a school.
The next day, another arson attempt at a nearby primary school was foiled, said Saidur Rahman, the district’s police chief.
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