Dhaka: Two local leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami and its student front Islami Chhatra Shibir were killed in police firing in a clash in Satkhira district during the 2^nd day of hartal on Tuesday.

Ruhul Amin, 35, and Arif Billah, 15 were killed while at least 30 people, including nine policemen, were injured at that time in the clash at Kaliganj upazila.

The daylong countrywide hartal, called by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and left-leaning 10 progressive student organsations over the verdict of former Jamaat ameer Ghulam Azam in a war crime case, began at daybreak on Tuesday amid the apprehension of violence.

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami enforced the dawn-to-dusk shutdown at 6:00am protesting what it said the government-sponsored killing, terrorism, mass arrest and mass repression as well as demanding immediate release of its former ameer Ghulam Azam.

The left-leaning student organsations called the hartal in protest against the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT)-1 verdict sentencing former Jamaat ameer Ghulam Azam 90 years in jail.

Bangladesh Chhatra Moitri president Bappaditya Basu told UNB on Monday that 11 student organisations, including Students’ Union, Students’ Federation, Bangladesh Chhatra Moitri, Chhatra Oikya Forum, Chhatra Samity, Biplobi Chhatra Moitri and Jasad Chhatra League called the strike as their demand for his death sentence went unheeded.

Bappaditya also noted Ganajagaran Manch also extended its support to the strike.

Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) and Bangladesh Samajtantrik Dal (BSD) extended full support to the hartal called by the left-leaning parties.

Hours after the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT)-1 jailed former Jamaat-e-Islami ameer Ghulam Azam 90 years to serve unto death for his crimes against humanity during the 1971 Liberation War, Jamaat acting secretary general Moulana Rafiqul Islam Khan announced the shutdown programme through a press statement.

The unusual hartal and counter-hartal enforced by the two rival camps during the holy month of fasting triggered apprehension of violence among the country’s people.

On Monday, the ICT-1 sentenced nonagenarian retired Jamaat-e-Islami ameer Ghulam Azam to 90 years to serve the jail term unto death for his crimes against humanity during the 1971 Liberation War.

Earlier, Jamaat-e-Islami observed a daylong shutdown on Monday that was marked by the killing of five people, vandalism, arrests, explosions of crude bombs and ransacking and torching of vehicles.

(FK/AMA/16/07/13)