A policeman lies injured during a clash between hawkers and shop-owners on the Bangabandhu Avenue in Dhaka on Friday while an official was trying to figure out who threw the stone that had hit the injured. — New Age photo

At least 10 people, including two policemen, were injured in clashes between businessmen and hawkers in the capital’s Bangabandhu Avenue area on Friday afternoon.
Motaleb Bhuiyan, 35, assistant sub-inspector of Paltan police, who sustained head injury during the clashes, was admitted to Square Hospitals in a critical condition.
Among the other injured, police constable Elias, 25, hawker Kabir Hossain, 25, Ramiz, 27, and pedestrian Jony, 17, took treatment in Dhaka Medical College Hospital.
The police arrested Ramna Bhaban cloth merchants’ association president Zahangir Alam Sarkar over the incident.
The clashes broke out after an altercation between Zahangir Hossain Sarkar and local hawkers over car parking, witnesses said.
Jainal Abedin, a businessman, said some hawkers had attacked Zahangir Hossain at about 2:30pm during an altercation between him and a shopkeeper.
The businessmen of the market also attacked the hawkers after hearing the news.
About 40 makeshift shops were vandalised and looted during the clashes, said local tea stall owner Nuru Mia.
 Paltan police officer-in-charge Golam Sarwar said the businessmen had attacked the police when they were trying to calm the situation.
The police charged baton and dispersed them.
Hawker Kabir Hossain alleged that the businessmen had looted their goods worth about Tk 10 lakh during the clashes.