More than 100 feared dead in Bangladesh ferry accident

Relatives mourn a victim of ferry accident in Bangladesh (Photo: Shahadat Hossain)

At least 125 people were missing and presumed dead Tuesday after an overloaded ferry with more than 200 passengers capsized on Monday while crossing a river in central Bangladesh.

The ferry MV Pinak-6 sank in the Padma River in Munshiganj district, about 44 kms from Dhaka.

Rescuers managed to save about 100 people following the sinking in rough waters and strong currents.

Only two bodies were recovered as of Tuesday morning.

Local media reported the ferry was carrying 250 passengers but officials at Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) could not confirm the figure as ferry operators in Bangladesh rarely keep passenger lists.

“The ferry was allowed 85 people but was carrying at least three times that number,” said Abdus Salam, administrative director at Fire Service and Civil Defense department.

“It tilted over and sank as it reached middle of the river when strong currents hit and panicking people started moving from one side to the other,” he said.

Rescuers failed to locate the position of the sunken ferry until Tuesday morning due to bad weather.

Thousands of anxious relatives gathered on the riverbank soon after the accident. Aminul Islam, 32 said his elder brother Hafizul and his family were on the doomed ferry.

Bangladesh police make arrest in killing of tribal villager

Tribal villagers carry the body of a fellow villager allegedly murdered by Muslims over a land dispute in northern Bangladesh (Photo: Antuni David)

Police in the Dinajpur district of northern Bangladesh arrested one person after a tribal Santal farmer was beaten to death by Muslim men on Saturday, allegedly over a long-running land dispute.

Dhudu Soren, 52, the father of four, died in a hospital in neighboring Rangpur district on Saturday after being beaten and stabbed by a group of Muslims, allegedly led by Abdul Goffar, while on his way to a local market in Khalippur village.

Over four decades Goffar’s family has been in dispute over 2.74 acres of land owned by Dhudu’s family. A legal battle in the court is ongoing.

Dhudu’s family members allege that in 1971 Dhudu’s father Fagu Soren and in 2011 his brother Gosai Soren were victims of secret killings by Goffar’s men.

“A case was filed against eight people by Dhudu’s son Robi on Sunday and we arrested Goffar’s wife. The other accused, including prime suspect Goffar, have fled the area and we are trying to locate and arrest them too,” said Mohammad Amirul Islam, of Nwabganj police station in Dinajpur.

Islam said they found serious injuries to the hands and legs of Dhudu before his body was sent for a post mortem. “The culprits used bamboo sticks and a knife to attack him. We have seized the weapons.”