Leader’s eye gouged out in clash a day before voting in Bangladesh, mother dies of shock

Dhaka. A heart-wrenching case of electoral rivalry and violence has come to light in Nandigram Upazila of Bogura district of Bangladesh. Here yesterday i.e. just before the voting to be held on February 12, in the violent clash between the workers of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Jamaat-e-Islami, not only were six people seriously injured, but the hatred became so prevalent that the eye of a leader was gouged out. After this gruesome incident, there is immense tension in the area and the political atmosphere has become heated.
According to the incident, the dispute started at around 7:30 pm on Monday evening in Parshun village when Jamaat-e-Islami workers were campaigning. BNP supporters present at the spot accused him of distributing money to woo voters. This accusation and counter-accusation quickly turned into a violent clash. It is being told that BNP workers caught some people of Jamaat and took them to the house of local leader Masood Rana. Shortly after this, a large number of Jamaat workers raided the house of Masood Rana to free his comrades. The barbarity during this attack shocked everyone. BNP candidate Mosharraf Hussain alleged in a press conference on Tuesday that the attackers gouged out the right eye of Masood Rana. Masood was immediately admitted to Bogura’s Shaheed Ziaur Rehman Medical College Hospital, where doctors described his condition as extremely critical. According to the hospital administration, Masood’s eye bone is broken and there is very little chance of him regaining his vision. He has been referred to the National Institute of Ophthalmology in Dhaka for better treatment. The sad aspect of this violence was not limited to this only. Mosharraf Hussain claimed that Masood Rana’s mother, Rabeya, fell ill and died of shock after hearing the news of the horrific incident that happened to her son. Namaz-e-Janaza has been performed in his ancestral house, due to which there is mourning in the entire village. On the other hand, Jamaat candidate Mostafa Faisal has completely rejected all allegations of vote buying. He counter-alleged that BNP workers attacked his people without any provocation, in which two of his workers were injured. The local police administration has confirmed the incident, but is refraining from giving detailed information in view of the sensitivity of the matter. At present the police is busy investigating the matter and maintaining peace.