Police have been ordered to widen operations against teen gangs beyond Dhaka and into districts across the country, following a run of violent property seizures in the capital and two killings of teenagers in as many weeks.
Inspector General of Police Md Ali Hossain Fakir issued the instruction, while Additional Inspector General Md Sayedur Rahman directed officers to build intelligence on gang membership and the people financing them.
The scale is substantial. The Dhaka Metropolitan Police has identified 127 gangs operating in the capital. A further 227 have been logged across other metropolitan areas and districts, with roughly 100 in Chattogram division alone and 25 recorded at district level in Noakhali.
Two deaths have sharpened the response. Ishiat Shahriar Oprotim, 13, was killed in Cumilla on September 18. A 16-year-old was killed in Chattogram on Tuesday in what police describe as an attack by a rival group.
Detentions have run into the thousands. On Monday, 1,310 people were picked up across Cumilla, Chattogram, Chandpur and Noakhali, of whom 730 were released into the custody of guardians. A further 379 were detained in Cumilla on Tuesday.
The crackdown follows four attacks on properties in Dhaka within two days. The Radda MCH-FP Centre in Mirpur-1 was demolished, a plot at Chand Udyan was stormed by a crowd estimated at 500, Shyamoli Housing was attacked, and the New Gini Properties compound was entered by a group of 200 to 250 people.
Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said special drives targeting extortionists, criminal gangs and drug dealers were already running and would be stepped up.
Analysts caution that arrests alone will not settle the problem. Prof Omar Faruk observes that influential figures use teenagers as instruments for establishing local dominance, while Towhidul Haque points to unemployment and political patronage as the conditions that keep the groups supplied with recruits.
