Parts of Dhaka left charred

The six burnt cars that lie at the entrance to the Department of Disaster Management at Mohakhali can hardly give a sense of the scale of destruction inside the 11-storey building.

In the parking space alone, there were 50 other private cars and microbuses -- all burnt to the skeleton. The acrid smell of the charred vehicles and other objects wafted through the air in the small space. A sub-station, an emergency response coordination centre and a resting room for Ansar members on the ground floor too were burnt down. 

Lifts; transmitters used for making contact during natural calamities; television screens; computers; air conditioners -- nothing was spared. 

The entire building, now enveloped in darkness, came under attack on July 18.

"Nothing was left untouched by the fire," said Mahbub Rahman, a DMD staffer who saw it all first-hand, told The Daily Star yesterday.

He said around 200 miscreants, carrying sticks, suddenly appeared around 4:00pm that day and started throwing brick chunks at the building. Those at the front of the line, he said, appeared to be aged under 18.

"Within a minute, they started vandalising the cars, and poured petrol on them and set them on fire. Three on-duty Ansar members stationed there were helpless. The mindless destruction went on for around half an hour," Mahbub said.

Mohibur Rahman, state minister for disaster management and relief, said over Tk 500 crore worth of damage was done in the arson attack at the DMD office.

"A five-member probe committee, headed by a DMD Director Abdullah Al Noman, was formed to ascertain the exact amount of damage. It was asked to submit a report within seven days," he told reporters yesterday.

Meanwhile, he said, a case was filed with Banani Police Station on July 20 over the attack. 

Other establishments that came under such attacks were the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) office; Setu Bhaban; BTV centre; the Mohakhali and Banani toll plazas; BRTA Bhaban; the office of the Assistant Superintendent of Police (Traffic) in Badda; Badda Ansar camp; Mirpur Indoor Stadium; Mirpur-10 police box and footbridge; and the Matsya Bhaban.

The destruction between July 18 and 19 were carried out during the unrest centring the quota reform movement.

So far, at least 146 people were killed in the clashes across the country.

The organisers of the quota movement have vehemently denied any protesting student's involvement in the destruction.

Meanwhile, the ruling Awami League has been pointing fingers at BNP-Jamaat men.

Visiting the DGHS yesterday, these correspondents found 22 vehicles vandalised and 19 others completely burnt in front of the directorate's old building.

Pieces of the shattered glass walls, doors, and windows at the MIS (Management Information System) and Old DGHS buildings were strewn all over the place.

Rezaul Karim, an Ansar member and a witness, said, "Some 200-300 people, armed with sharp weapons, entered the building chanting "capture DGHS [Dhor Shastho Odhidaptar]" around 4:15pm [on July 19]. They threatened the on-duty five Ansar members, and vandalised the parked vehicles and structures."

The attackers were carrying red and black bags from where they pulled out petrol, which they poured on the vehicles to set them ablaze, he added.

"We informed our bosses and they called the national emergency helpline-999, seeking help but they too expressed their helplessness."

The toll plazas of elevated expressway at Mohakhali and Banani-2, were also set on fire at 5:00pm and burned till 8:20pm on July 18. The correspondents saw the charred iron structures with ashes all around.

Md Sakib, a security guard of the Mohakhali toll plaza, said, "Several hundred people carrying machetes and sticks first vandalised the toll plaza. Before leaving, two of them set those on fire using petrol."

The toll plaza authorities too called police, whose response, yet again, came in the negative.

Sakib, who witnessed it, added that the attackers did not look like students. 

Fazlul Haque, security supervisor of Banani-2 toll plaza, gave a similar description.

In front of Setu Bhaban in Banani, these correspondents saw two burnt cars still lying on the road. The glass front of the building was shattered.

Inside, five motorcycles and 48 cars were burnt while the ground and first floors of the 12-storey building were vandalised and burnt at places.

Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader's room was vandalised, while computers, laptops, televisions and other valuables were looted from the building.

Nearby, BRTA headquarters and the Roads and Highway's executive engineer's Dhaka office were also vandalised and two cars torched.

Bangladesh Television centre in Rampura was also vandalised and set on fire.

BTV Director General Jahangir Hossain said the design section was fully gutted, while the administrative and studio rooms, along with the auditorium, were torched. Cameras and laptops were stolen.

"The attackers also looted the vintage cameras from the BTV museum," he said, adding that 18 vehicles, including a telecast car, were burnt and nine others were vandalised.
In Badda, attackers torched the zonal office of Assistant Commissioner of Police (traffic) and the Ansar Camp office, where at least seven burnt cars were found.

At the Mirpur-10 roundabout, the traffic police box and footbridge were set ablaze, rendering them unusable.

Visiting Badda, Rampura, Mirpur and Banani areas, these correspondents found that at least five burnt cars lying on roads. Streel materials from the road dividers, lampposts, and signboards were also found broken.