At least 21 people, including jhut (cutting waste, fluffs and scraps from readymade garment factories) traders, were detained from Ashulina, Savar and Gazipur between Thursday night and Friday afternoon for their suspected involvement in inciting the recent unrest in garments factories.
Apart from detainees, Jatiya Sramik League Gazipur city鈥檚 ward number-26 vice-president Md Lutfur Rahman was also arrested early Friday in Gazipur city on the charges of inciting garment workers鈥� unrest.
The detentions were made in the joint drives launched on September 4 over the unrest in garment factories.
As of 6:00pm on Friday, three of the detainees were kept at the Savar police station, 11 at the Ashulia police station, six under Industrial Police鈥檚 custody, and one at the Konabari police station in Gazipur, according to the police.聽
Dhaka district superintendent of police Ahmad Mueed told 抖阴精品 that they had detained 20 people鈥�11 at Ashulia, three at Savar and six from the industrial zone鈥攆rom Thursday night to Friday afternoon.
鈥業t was a joint drive of the Bangladesh Army, police and industrial police. All the detainees are suspects in instigating the workers鈥� unrest,鈥� said Mueed.
He said that most of them tried to incite factory unrest for taking control of the jhut business.
鈥楾he joint drive began on Wednesday and we did not arrest anyone on the first day,鈥� he added.
Monirul Islam, a security in-charge at the industrial estate of the Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation at Konabari in Gazipur was detained on Thursday night, Konabari police officer-in-charge Shah Alam confirmed.
Jatiya Sramik League Gazipur City ward unit vice-president Md Lutfur Rahman was also arrested for inciting RMG worker unrest Shibbari crossing in the city early Friday.
Confirming the matter, Bason police station officer-in-charge Jahangir Alam said that they sent Lutfar to the court as he was also an accused of vandalising police station and vehicles.
The unrest in garment factories began in the final week of August that intensified in the beginning of September.
Garment workers leaders under the banner of Bangladesh Garment Workers鈥� Solidarity, meanwhile on Friday afternoon, held a protest rally at Ashulia Press Club, demanding justice for the killing of students and workers during the student-led mass uprising.
They also demanded payment of workers鈥� dues and recognition of their logical demands, while urged unity to protect the workers and industry.
Bangladesh Garment Workers鈥� Solidarity president Taslima Akhter, assistant secretary MM Nurul Islam, and its Ashulia unit general secretary Billal Sheikh, among others, spoke at the rally, said a press release.聽
Speakers alleged that opportunists were trying to destroy the garment workers鈥� logical demands by launching attacks on industries centring dominance over the jhut business after the change of power.
They said that it was difficult for workers to survive with the minimum wage of Tk 12,500 as prices of essentials skyrocketed.
Bangladesh Sramik Kalyan Federation in a press release rejected Tk 12,500 as the minimum wage, saying that nearly 200 garment factories were closed over the chaos recently in Savar, Ashulia and Gazipur.
The organisation claimed that the movement was originally launched with the demand to increase the wages, but it was the jhut traders who, in a pre-planned manner, turned the movement to settle their dominance over the business and had their thugs attack and vandalise factories.
All factories in Savar, Ashulia and Gazipur remained closed on Friday as it was weekend.聽聽
The Bangladesh Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association said that 129 readymade garment factories in different industrial belts were unable to operate on Thursday due to workers鈥� unrest, which they said was largely instigated by outsiders.
Of the 129 units, 64 factories are situated between Jirabo and Bishmail area, and 65 units are situated between Jirabo and Baipail area, according to the association that also said that most factories had started the day smoothly.
On Thursday, most of the factories announced end of day鈥檚 operation shortly after 3:00pm, association officials said.
On Wednesday, at least 167 more readymade garment factories suspended operations, following the closure of around 100 factories on Monday and 126 on Tuesday due to the unrest.