Grameen Bank's branch set on fire in eastern Bangladesh

Dhaka, Nov 12 (PTI) A local branch of Grameen Bank, founded by Muhammad Yunus, was set on fire by unidentified men in eastern Bangladesh early Wednesday, two days after a crude bomb blast outside its headquarters in the national capital.

No casualties were reported in the fire at the bank's Chandura branch in Brahmanbaria's Bijoynagar upazila, according to the bank authorities.

"The incident took place around 2:00 am when some miscreants poured petrol from outside and set the building on fire," the branch manager, Kalim Uddin, told reporters.

He said that the guard noticed the fire and immediately informed the authorities. The fire was brought under control with the help of locals.

Grameen Bank officials said that the documents and furniture inside the building were damaged, though the vault containing cash remained unharmed.

The authorities have ordered an intensified round-the-clock security vigil across Dhaka, which witnessed a series of crude bomb explosions and burning of a dozen parked empty buses in recent days, ahead of an expected verdict in a case against deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina's trial in absentia.

Hasina’s now disbanded Awami League on social media called for a “Dhaka lockdown” on November 13, when Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal (ICT-BD) is set to announce a date for delivering a verdict against Hasina. The prosecution is demanding the death penalty for Hasina.

On Monday, a series of crude bomb explosions took place in Dhaka, including outside the head office of the Grameen Bank and a business outlet owned by an aide of Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, prompting authorities to beef up the security.

Yunus, who is currently the Chief Adviser of the interim government, founded the Grameen Bank in 1983 and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for his work in poverty alleviation and the empowerment of poor women.

His office has issued a warning saying any attempt to enforce a lockdown would be “met with the full force of the law”.

"No terrorist will be spared," Home Affairs adviser Lt Gen (retd.) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury told reporters on Tuesday.

All agencies were now operating in a coordinated manner, with patrols increased and static duties expanded across the country, he added.

He said security had been reinforced at key points and installations, including the ICT-BD tribunal, metro rail stations, and railway areas, as part of a tightened surveillance campaign. PTI AR ZH ZH