Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami chief and opposition leader Dr. Shafiqur Rahman declared his readiness to personally defend Islami Bank if necessary, saying he would take to the streets and stand in front to protect it. He made the remarks on Wednesday night during Jamaat’s Eid reunion event.

Rahman emphasized that Islami Bank does not belong to any political party but to the people who have deposited their money there. He stated that if depositors were attacked, he would stand before them and face any violence first. He described the bank as belonging to everyone in the country.

The Jamaat leader also criticized the appointment of what he called an associate of a “fascist” to a leadership position at Islami Bank, questioning whether the husband of a loan defaulter could serve as the bank’s chairman.

The Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) has announced another increase in electricity prices, prompting strong criticism from Khelafat Majlis. According to a statement issued by the party’s Amir Maulana Abdul Basit Azad and Secretary General Dr. Ahmad Abdul Kader, BERC raised wholesale electricity rates by 19.85 percent and retail rates by 15 to 19.94 percent. The transmission charge was also increased by 23.96 percent.

Khelafat Majlis said the new price hike would make public life more difficult and lead to another round of commodity price increases. The party accused the government of shifting the burden of corruption, mismanagement, poor planning, and waste within the power sector onto ordinary consumers. It strongly protested the decision and demanded an immediate reduction in electricity and fuel prices, as well as measures to bring essential goods within consumers’ purchasing power.

The statement reflects growing political opposition to recent energy price adjustments and calls for urgent government action to ease public hardship.

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami has strongly condemned a violent attack on the family and relatives of Kushtia Member of Parliament Mufti Amir Hamza in Hasadah Bazar of Jibannagar, Chuadanga. The party expressed deep concern and demanded the immediate arrest and exemplary punishment of those involved. The statement was issued on Wednesday by Advocate Ehsanul Mahbub Zubair, Assistant Secretary General and head of Jamaat’s Central Publicity and Media Department.

According to the statement, the attack occurred on June 1 during Asr prayer time while the MP was traveling with his family to his in-laws’ house. The assailants allegedly included local residents Mostafizur Rahman Mostak, his sons Shahriar and Rimon, who reportedly injured the MP’s brother-in-law Abu Bakkar, a local journalist, and driver Saddam Hossain. The attackers also allegedly behaved indecently with female family members.

Jamaat-e-Islami urged law enforcement agencies to arrest the identified perpetrators immediately and ensure justice. The party also wished a speedy recovery for the injured victims.

Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) reported that the metro rail transported an average of 151,877 passengers per day between May 25 and May 31, excluding Eid day. The company released this information in a statement on Wednesday, noting that 140 scheduled trips were operated daily during the period.

To manage the increased passenger demand around Eid, DMTCL kept 10 additional trains on standby for possible deployment. The metro rail played a significant role in facilitating travel for people leaving Dhaka for their hometowns before Eid and returning to their workplaces afterward.

According to DMTCL, officials and employees worked during public holidays to maintain operations. Cleaning activities were also carried out at metro stations and surrounding areas. The company expressed gratitude to passengers and stakeholders for their cooperation in ensuring smooth, safe, and uninterrupted metro services during the Eid holidays.

The International Crimes Tribunal-2 is scheduled to hold a hearing today, Thursday, on the charge framing in the Shahid Wasim murder case. The case involves the killing of student leader Shahid Wasim and five others during the July uprising in Chattogram. Former foreign minister Hasan Mahmud, former education minister Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury Nowfel, and 20 others are accused. The three-member tribunal panel is chaired by Justice Nazrul Islam Chowdhury, with judges Manjurul Bashid, Nur Mohammad Shahriar Karib Shafiul Alam Mahmud, and Mohitul Haque Enam Chowdhury as members.

Earlier, on May 13, the tribunal appointed state-funded lawyers for 17 absconding defendants and set June 4 for the charge-framing hearing. Among the 22 accused, five are in custody, including former MP ABM Fazle Karim Chowdhury and several political activists, who will be produced before the tribunal today. The remaining 17, including former Chattogram mayor A J M Nasir Uddin, remain absconding.

The prosecution has brought three charges against the 22 accused: the murder of six individuals on July 16 and 18, 2024, and the serious injury of over a hundred people.

Saiful Haque, General Secretary of the Revolutionary Workers Party of Bangladesh, has strongly criticized the government’s decision to raise electricity prices again ahead of the national budget. In a statement to the media on Wednesday, he said ordinary citizens should not be punished for theft, corruption, waste, and mismanagement in the power sector. He warned that the new price hike would worsen the suffering of low-income people already struggling with rising living costs.

Haque described the government’s move as arbitrary and accused the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) of failing to justify the increase at both wholesale and consumer levels. He argued that reducing corruption and inefficiency in the energy and power sectors would eliminate the need for such hikes. He also criticized BERC’s public hearings as a mere formality to legitimize government decisions.

He demanded the immediate withdrawal of the price hike decision and called for amendments to BERC’s existing law so that it can recommend price reductions. Haque further urged the government to include adequate allocations and a comprehensive plan for the energy and power sectors in the upcoming national budget.

Police have dismissed allegations that National Citizen Party (NCP) chief coordinator Nasiruddin Patwari’s car was attacked in Benapole market on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. NCP leaders had claimed that a group of young men threw eggs and later attacked their convoy, injuring several party members after Patwari’s visit to the Sadipur border area. However, police stated that no such incident occurred and described the allegations as false.

According to NCP statements, Patwari and other central and local leaders visited the Sadipur border to protest alleged push-in attempts. The party claimed that after the inspection, some youths threw eggs at their vehicle and later attacked them in Benapole market. Patwari also shared a photo of a damaged car window on social media, saying four people were injured but others were safe.

Benapole Port Police Station Officer-in-Charge Mohammad Ashraf Hossain said the situation remained peaceful and the NCP program ended normally, rejecting the party’s claims of any attack.

An allegation has surfaced that Munmun Nahar Asha, the Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) of Osmaninagar in Sylhet, fined a Banoful & Company employee Tk 50,000 for addressing her as 'Apa' during a visit to the company’s Tajpur branch on May 29. The UNO reportedly visited the shop with her daughter in disguise as a regular customer. When employee Abdul Mannan used the term 'Apa' while responding to her inquiry about sweets, she allegedly became angry, identified herself as a magistrate, and initiated a mobile court action.

According to Mannan, he was threatened with jail and forced to sign a document under pressure. He later sought leniency at the UNO office on June 1 but received no relief. Local BNP leaders intervened to help him keep his job after he was initially dismissed. The company has since transferred him to its Sylhet factory and decided to deduct the fine from his salary.

The branch manager and local officials offered differing explanations, while the UNO did not respond to repeated phone calls seeking comment.

A school student died after being trapped in quicksand at a stream in the Kejuri Chhara tea garden area of Sreemangal upazila, Moulvibazar, on Tuesday afternoon. The deceased, Rudra Tanti, was the son of Kamal Tanti and a seventh-grade student at Sreemangal Runner High School. He went missing around 1 p.m. while bathing in the stream with friends. After an extensive search by locals and relatives, his body was recovered from underwater.

According to eyewitness Sanjay Bonarjee, Rudra went underwater while bathing and did not resurface. His friends alerted local residents, who, along with tea garden workers and family members, conducted a prolonged search before recovering the body. Rudra’s father said he could not understand how the incident occurred but suspected that his son got stuck in quicksand and could not escape.

Sreemangal Fire Service Station Officer Solaiman Akanji stated that a rescue team was dispatched after receiving the report but was informed 13 minutes later by a local union parishad member that the body had already been recovered by residents.

Inkilab Moncho has announced new protest programs demanding justice for the killing of Sharif Osman Hadi, repatriation of the accused, and investigation into alleged domestic and foreign conspiracies behind the incident. The group declared intensified agitation due to a lack of visible progress in the investigation and urged swift trial proceedings. The announcement was made by member secretary Abdullah Al Jaber during an emergency press conference held Wednesday in front of Dhaka University’s Madhur Canteen.

According to Jaber, a torch procession will take place Thursday evening, followed by a protest rally after Friday prayers at the university’s central mosque. Similar programs will be held across the country. He alleged repeated delays in the investigation and claimed that various “tags” were used to shield those involved. He also raised suspicions of possible foreign involvement, citing remarks by a former West Bengal chief minister.

The group demanded accountability over delayed border sealing that allegedly allowed suspects to flee through the Haluaghat border and criticized intelligence agencies for failing to identify the killers. They also called for a UN-led international investigation and a clear timeline for bringing the accused back to Bangladesh.

Actor Shirthaj Zebin has gained audience attention for her performance as Sumaiya in the Eid drama 'Maya Pakhi', written and directed by Zakaria Shaukhine. The drama portrays the dark side of corporate life through the rivalry between two women, Sumaiya and Maya, competing for their boss’s attention. Despite Sumaiya’s negative traits, Zebin’s portrayal has been widely discussed and appreciated by viewers.

Zebin stated that she is drawn to challenging roles that capture audience interest. She previously debuted under Shaukhine’s direction and has since worked with him on other projects. In 'Maya Pakhi', she expressed gratitude for the audience’s response, noting that the story reflects the hidden struggles within corporate environments. The drama also stars Shahed Sharif Khan, Apurba, and Niha in key roles.

Recently, Zebin completed her BBA from North South University. On her birthday, she chose to spend the day with children at an orphanage in Bashundhara, Dhaka, personally covering the expenses of the meal.

Chuadanga district experienced a sudden return of a moderate heatwave on June 3, 2026, with the temperature reaching 38 degrees Celsius and humidity at 47 percent. The heatwave followed a week of relatively lower temperatures after rainfall had eased conditions since May 18. On June 1 and 2, the district recorded temperatures of 37.8 and 36.5 degrees Celsius respectively.

According to the acting officer of Chuadanga’s first-class weather observatory, the temperature was recorded at 38 degrees Celsius at 3 p.m. on June 3. The official noted that a moderate heatwave is currently sweeping across the district and that the temperature may drop by one degree the following day.

Field observations showed that the intense sunlight caused difficulties for school students, day laborers, and rickshaw pullers working outdoors under the scorching heat.

A violent clash erupted in Gopalganj’s Kotalipara upazila after three men were detained on suspicion of theft. The incident occurred in the Ghagarkanda area, where locals reportedly assaulted the detainees, leading to widespread tension. Following the confrontation, a case was filed at Kotalipara Police Station by local resident Jalil Gazi, naming 30 individuals and listing 200 to 300 others as unidentified suspects. Police later arrested three people and sent them to jail through the court.

According to local accounts, the conflict began when three men accused of stealing a battery were held at the office of a local anti-drug committee. Allegations of assault against the detainees spread quickly, triggering clashes, vandalism, and the forcible release of the detained men. Jalil Gazi claimed that attackers vandalized the committee office and nearby houses, while one detainee alleged he was tortured and pressured to confess to theft.

Police said additional forces were deployed to restore order and that the situation is now calm. An investigation is underway to determine responsibility for the violence.

Two brothers drowned while bathing in the Atrai River at Kalirbazar Ghat in Khansama upazila of Dinajpur on Wednesday morning. The victims were Manna Islam, aged 45, and Saddam Hossain, aged 32, both sons of the late Siraj Uddin from Mirpur-11 in Dhaka. The incident occurred around 11 a.m. when the brothers, along with family members, stopped to bathe in the river while returning from a visit to a lychee orchard in the Joar area.

According to family and local sources, Saddam Hossain had recently come to visit his in-laws in Champatali village of Chirirbandar upazila. During the bath, Manna Islam’s two sons managed to reach the shore safely, but the two brothers went missing. Local residents began rescue efforts and informed the fire service. The Khansama Fire Service team recovered Manna Islam’s body at 2:15 p.m., and a diver team from Rangpur later recovered Saddam Hossain’s body at 3:35 p.m.

Locals claimed that sand extraction by dredgers had created deep pits in the riverbed, which may have caused the drowning. Police confirmed that legal procedures are underway following the recovery of the bodies.

Prime Minister Tarek Rahman is scheduled to visit Cox’s Bazar on June 14 to attend the inauguration of a canal excavation program. The information was confirmed by Water Resources Minister Shahid Uddin Chowdhury Anee after a high-level meeting with the Prime Minister at the Secretariat on Wednesday, June 3.

According to the minister, the Prime Minister convened a special meeting earlier in the day to find a permanent solution to waterlogging. Senior officials from the Water Resources Ministry and the Dhaka and Narayanganj City Corporations attended the meeting. It was decided that a completed project under the Water Resources Ministry would be handed over to the City Corporation within two weeks.

The minister expressed optimism that under the City Corporation’s management and through joint efforts, the initiative would yield the desired results. The City Corporation will also oversee waste removal and maintain a waste-free environment, marking what the minister described as a very positive discussion.