Garment workers demanding a wage increase blocked the Dhaka-Tangail highway in the Palli Bidyut area of Gazipur again on Saturday, triggering clashes and repeated chases between the protesters and police.
Thousands of workers took to the highway around 10:00 am after refusing to join work at their factories, witnesses said.
Police fired tear gas shells and sound grenades to disperse the workers, who allegedly threw bricks and stones at law enforcement personnel.
Md Amjad Hossain, superintendent of police of Gazipur Industrial Police-2, said that the workers attempted to block the highway instead of joining their workplaces.
‘Police fired tear gas shells to disperse them. The workers threw bricks and stones at law enforcement personnel. They were later chased away,’ he said.
However, the workers regrouped and blocked the highway again, bringing traffic on the busy route to a halt, he added.
Factories in the affected area were declared closed amid the unrest.
FP/A
