Fire in rice mill in Dhanbari, fish in pond die, panic in family

A mysterious fire in a rice mill of the same owner in Dhanbari, Tangail and the poisoning of fish in two bighas of pond on the same night have created a sensation in the area. Last Saturday (June 6) night, miscreants set fire to the rice mill and pond of a person named Abu Bakar Siddiqui in Char Bhatkura village of ward number 8 of the municipality.
The victim, Abu Bakar Siddiqui, said that his rice mill suddenly caught fire late on Saturday night. Locals rushed to the spot and tried to control the fire. Later, a team from Dhanbari Fire Service and Civil Defense reached the spot and brought the situation under control. On the same night, the miscreants poisoned his two bighas of pond and killed the fish. Locals have been gathering to see dead fish floating in the pond since Sunday morning.
Abu Bakar Siddiqui claimed that he had been injured and affected by attacks several times before. He was attacked by the opposition for filing a case at the police station and lobbying for the arrest of the accused in an auto-rickshaw theft case. Also, a few months after August 5, 2024, miscreants set fire to a Sonalika power tiller worth around Tk 2.2 million kept in front of his house. He said that he was later forced to sell the damaged power tiller for just Tk 8 million.
Abu Bakr Siddiqui believes that the recent fire at the paddy threshing mill and the fish deaths in the pond may also be related to the same source. He is the son of Ahmed Ali, who was killed in Char Bhatkura village. A section of the locals believe that these incidents may have been targeted at them as the family is involved in the politics of the banned Awami League. However, no concrete evidence has been found in this regard yet.
It is learnt that after August 5, 2024, Abu Bakr Siddiqui’s son Abdul Mannan has left the Mandal area after being accused in various cases. After the incident, a team led by SI Arif of Dhanbari Police Station inspected the scene around 10 am on Sunday. They saw dead fish in the pond and fire-damaged structures. Upazila BNP President Principal M Azizur Rahman and Municipal BNP President SMA Shobhan also went to inspect. OC Nurus Salam Siddiqui said that no written complaint was received in this regard. If a complaint is received, necessary legal action will be taken against the real cause and those responsible after an investigation.