TWO persons were killed and 65 people injured in series of clash at two villages in the Shanikdiar Char area of Himayeetpur union under Pabna sadar upazila on Thursday and Friday.
   The deceased were identified as Anwarul Islam, 25, and Abdus Salam, 37, of village Bhabanipur under the same upazila.
   According to the Rapid Action Battalion, police and witnesses, over 100 armed men of Gaffar group of village Bhagirathpur locked in a gunfight with Hashem Ali group of village Bhabaipur over establishing supremacy in the area in the afternoon on Thursday. The gunfight continued one and a half hours and about 150 rounds of bullet were exchanged between the rival groups, leaving one dead on the spot and 45 people injured.
   On Friday morning, the two groups again engaged in the gunfight at the same place, leaving 26 people injured. One of them died on way to hospital on Friday noon.
   On information, a RAB team and the police went to the spot and fired 16 rounds of bullet to bring the situation under control. The law enforcers arrested 51 people with firearms from the spot. They recovered one revolver, two one-barrel guns and various sharp weapons. Two more persons were arrested on Saturday.
   Of the 15 injured, 12 persons were admitted to Pabna General Hospital. They are Rezaul Karim, 38, Dulal, 23, Ashraful Islam, 22, Jalaluddin, 43, Yusuf Ali, 24, Aslam,
   18, Sadek Ali, 35, Kata, 41, Hashem Ali, 74, Aftab Uddin, 65, Ashraf Sheik, 41, Amirul Islam, 36.
   Two cases were registered with the police against 173 people.
   The Pabna police super, Abdullahel Baki, said addi- tional police were deployed in the area.
   Meanwhile, our Chapainawabganj correspondent adds: At least 15 people, including a police constable, were injured in a clash between two groups of people in the Chapainawabganj town Thursday evening.
   The residents said the clash took place over parking of a motorcycle in front of a shop. About nine bombs had been exploded during the clash before the police reached the spot.
   The injured constable, Ruhul Amin, and two villagers, Kalu and Ibrahim, were admitted to Chapainawabganj Sadar Hospital.

TWO housewives were killed allegedly by their husbands for dowry in Comilla on Friday night.
   The victims were Abuni Akhter, 35, wife of Tajul Islam of village Kodaiduly under Burichang upazila and Honufa Begum, 20, wife of Md Oliullah of village Gollai under Daudkandi upazila.
   Quoting local people, the police said Abuni married Tajul about 15 years back. She was beaten to death by her husband on Friday night as her parents failed to pay the dowry he had been demanding for some days. The police could not arrest the alleged killer.
   In another incident, Oliullah, who married Honufa only ten months ago, strangled his wife for dowry.
   Later Oliuallah tried to misrepresent the killing as a suicide by pouring poison into her mouth, victim’s relatives said. They added that the husband always pressed Honufa for bringing dowry from her parents.
   The police arrested Oliullah and his parents on Saturday morning after the victim’s mother had filed a case accusing them of killing her daughter.
   Separate cases were filed with the respective police stations.

AS MANY as 5,500 cases have been pending with different courts in Narsingdi for a long time delaying justice to the justice seekers.
   According to court sources, shortage of class one magistrate is a major impediment in disposing of the cases of serious nature. There is only one first class magistrate at Narsingdi at the moment as against the requirement of five class one magistrates.
   The sources pointed out that there were cases which should be dealt by the first class magistrate only. But dearth of class one magistrate has been hampering the disposal of the pending cases.
   The Narsingdi deputy commissioner, Md Firoj Salahuddin, while talking to New Age, admitted that there has been backlog of cases for want of adequate number of first class magistrate. 'Only one first class magistrate is now working here whereas we need five class one magistrates,' he added.
   Advocate Abul Kalam Azad and Advocate Amjad Hossain, president and general secretary of the district lawyers' association respectively, said judicial activities were being hampered due to shortage of first class magistrate. They demanded posting of at least three first class magistrates at Narsingdi.

The police recovered one pistol and 48 rounds of bullet from the Mohananda bus terminal area in the Chapainawabganj town early Friday.
   The sadar police said tipped off, they recovered the arms and ammunitions from an abandoned bag at about 12:30pm. None was, however, arrested.

AN ELDERLY woman was killed and 10 were injured in a collision between a bus and a tempo on Jessore-Chaugacha road on Friday.
   The dead was Ashura Begum, 50, of Chaugacha in Jessore.
   Locals said the accident took place when a Chaugacha-bound bus collided head-on with a tempo near Moshiur Rahman Square on Jessore-Chaugacha road under Chaugacha upazila in Jessore at about 5:00pm.
   Ashura died on the spot.
   The injured were taken to Chaugacha Upazila Health Complex.
   The body was sent to hospital morgue. A case was filed with the police.