Clash, vandalism and homemade bomb explosion at two hotels in Rajshahi over food dispute

PNN News Desk, Rajshahi

An incident of clash, vandalism and homemade bomb explosions occurred at Binodpur Bazar under Motihar Police Station in Rajshahi following a dispute over delayed food service at a restaurant. Two food hotels were severely damaged in the incident that took place on Friday night, and three police officers were injured while trying to bring the situation under control.

According to local sources and police, around 9:30 pm on Friday, a man visited a restaurant in Binodpur Bazar with his family for dinner. After finishing the meal, he ordered some additional food for parcel. However, when he was informed that it would take some time to prepare, an argument broke out between him and the staff. At one stage, he left the place.

Shortly afterward, a group of young men attacked the restaurant with local weapons. They vandalized furniture and exploded several homemade bombs, spreading panic in the area. At the same time, another nearby food shop was also attacked and vandalized.

Police arrived at the scene after receiving information, but the attackers allegedly threw explosives targeting the police as well. Constable Foyez Uddin and two other police officers were injured. Foyez Uddin was admitted to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital. Several hotel staff members were also injured and received first aid.

The owner of one affected restaurant said such violence over a minor misunderstanding is extremely alarming. He added that the attackers not only vandalized the business establishments but also targeted law enforcement officers with explosives.

On the other hand, the person involved in the initial complaint claimed that during the argument over the parcel order, some hotel staff behaved rudely with him. He said he left the place to avoid escalation and denied any knowledge of the subsequent attack.

Motihar Police Station Officer-in-Charge Kabir Hossain said the violence erupted from a trivial incident. Additional police have been deployed and efforts are underway to identify those involved and take legal action.