For all latest news, follow the Daily Sun's Google News channel.
Dozens injured as Uttara RMG workers clash with police
Daily Sun Report, Dhaka
Published: 18 Oct 2026, 12:00 AM
Police respond with force to contain an ongoing demonstration by garment workers seeking their unpaid wages in the capital's Uttara on Saturday. -Daily sun Photo
At least 50 garment workers and 19 police personnel were injured in clashes in Uttara of the capital on Saturday as readymade garment (RMG) workers took to the streets for a fifth consecutive day, demanding unpaid wages and a minimum monthly salary of Tk30,000.
One police officer suffered a broken arm, while two police vehicles and a motorbike were damaged, officials said.
Workers from garment factories in Uttarkhan and Dakkhinkhan began gathering around 10am at several railway crossings, including Kashaibari, Jamtala and Azampur, as well as at Jasimuddin.
Around 11:30am, they attempted to block part of the Dhaka-Mymensingh Highway at Rajlakshmi. Police asked them to clear the road, but the crowd allegedly attacked officers with sticks and pieces of brick, according to local accounts.
Police responded with batons, tear gas, water cannons, sound grenades and rubber bullets, said Ruhina Akter, a sub-inspector at Uttara East police station. She said officers eventually brought the situation under control.
Rezaul Karim, deputy commissioner of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Uttara Crime Division, said police initially tried to persuade the protesters to leave the road.
“Around 19 policemen were injured as the protesters hurled brickbats at them,” he said, adding that an officer from the Industrial Police suffered a broken arm.
Clashes and chases between the two sides continued for nearly an hour, he said. The workers later dispersed, and traffic returned to normal, according to police.
Kazi Ruhul Amin, general secretary of the Bangladesh Garment and Sweater Workers’ Trade Union Centre, said more than 50 workers had been injured.
“We have learned that 18 workers received treatment at Kuwait-Bangladesh Friendship Government Hospital alone,” he said, adding that at least two required admission.