Six people have been injured and four others are in police custody after officers from the Kokrobite District Police Headquarters allegedly assaulted taxi drivers during a funeral wake-keeping.
The incident occurred at the Kokrobite Goil Filling Station, where drivers were directing the hearse carrying the body of a colleague’s wife to ease traffic on the Kokrobite road.
According to reports, the police accused the taxi drivers of blocking the road with their vehicles, which led to the confrontation. At least six people, including one passenger, sustained injuries, while four drivers-among them the chairman of the Kokrobite Drivers Association-were arrested.
Some of the injured drivers, in an interview, said they did not understand their offence since they were only trying to control traffic for the hearse.
They alleged that the police officers attacked them with sticks without provocation.
The drivers further claimed that this was not the first time officers from the Kokrobite District Command had assaulted them, noting that drivers and motorbike riders (okada) are often harassed when they refuse to give officers money.
They are calling on the Inspector General of Police and the Minister for the Interior to take swift action against the officers involved and their commander, warning that failure to do so would compel them to “advise themselves.”
Meanwhile, the district station officer and his men are also reported to have assaulted and driven away journalists who had gone to hear their side of the story.