Police detained one person on Friday morning after a group allegedly attempted to stage a march under the banner of the Dhaka North unit of the Swechhasebak League in Uttara, the capital. The incident took place near the Jasim Uddin area on the Dhaka-Gazipur highway.
According to eyewitnesses, several people gathered in the area at around 7:45am carrying a banner bearing the name of the Dhaka North unit of the Swechhasebak League. Some of those who had assembled reportedly attempted to start a procession and raised various slogans.
A banner bearing the name of Anisur Rahman Naim, general secretary of the Dhaka North unit of the Swechhasebak League and a former councillor of Dhaka North City Corporation, was also seen among the materials carried by the group, according to information available from the scene.
The gathering did not continue for long. When the participants noticed the presence of police, they quickly dispersed and attempted to leave the area. Police subsequently pursued them as some of the participants moved around the vicinity of the highway in an effort to get away.
At one stage, police detained one person and recovered banners and posters from him.
Morshed Alam, officer-in-charge of Uttara East Police Station, said police went to the area after receiving information that several Swechhasebak League activists were gathering there.
“After seeing the police, those who had gathered dispersed,” he said. One person was detained while carrying posters and banners, according to the officer.
The incident occurred on a major highway during the morning rush period, prompting police to move quickly to bring the situation under control. Police did not immediately disclose how many people had gathered or whether the group had a specific organisational programme planned beyond the attempted procession.
Authorities also did not immediately provide details about the identity of the detained person or indicate what legal action, if any, would be taken against those involved. Further information may emerge after the detained individual is questioned about the gathering, the attempted march and the people who may have organised or participated in it.
The Jasim Uddin area returned to normal after the incident, according to sources familiar with the situation. There were no immediate reports of any major disruption to traffic or further confrontation in the area.
The incident comes against a broader backdrop in which political gatherings and street processions in the capital can quickly draw police attention, particularly when they take place on busy arterial roads. In this case, however, police said the situation was brought under control shortly after their arrival, while details concerning the wider circumstances of the gathering remained unclear.
