A Hindu grocery shop owner, Sarat Chakraborty Mani, was killed on Monday night in Narsingdi, on the outskirts of Dhaka, Bangladesh, where he was reportedly attacked with sharp weapons, according to several reports.
This incident brings the number of fatal attacks on members of the minority community to six within the past 18 days, amid ongoing unrest across the country.
According to a report by NDTV citing residents, Mani, 40, was at his grocery shop in Charsindur Bazar in Palash Upazila when unidentified attackers suddenly assaulted him, leaving him critically injured. Locals rushed him to a hospital, but he died on the way.
Weekly Blitz reported that Chakraborty was killed by extremist religious fundamentalists.
Earlier, a Hindu businessman who also served as the acting editor of a newspaper was shot dead by unidentified assailants on Monday in Bangladesh’s Jessore district, local media reported.
The victim was identified as 38-year-old Rana Pratap Bairagi, a resident of Arua village in Keshabpur Upazila, Jessore, in the Khulna Division, according to Bangla daily Prothom Alo.
Bairagi owned an ice factory at Kopaliya Bazar in Monirampur and was the acting editor of ‘Dainik BD Khabar’, a newspaper published from Narail, the report said.
The assailants reportedly arrived suddenly and assaulted him with sharp weapons before fleeing the scene. He sustained critical injuries and died while being taken to the hospital, reported Local Media.
Was Mani killed over a Facebook post?
According to local media, on 19 December, Mani wrote a Facebook post expressing concern about violence in the country, describing his birthplace as having become “a valley of death.”
Police are investigating the incident.
Attacks on minorities in Bangladesh
On 3 January, Khokon Chandra Das (50) died after he was brutally attacked, hacked and set on fire.
On 24 December, another Hindu man, Amrit Mondal, was lynched over alleged extortion in Rajbari town’s Pangsha upazila.
On 18 December, Dipu Chandra Das (25) was lynched by a mob and his body set on fire over alleged blasphemy in Mymensingh city.
Unidentified men set on fire the Qatar expatriate workers Shukh Shil and Anil Shil’s home in the Raojan area on the outskirts of Chattogram on 23 December, but the residents managed to come out of the building unharmed.
This incident highlights the alarming rise in violence against minorities in Bangladesh, reflecting a broader issue of safety and law enforcement.
Mani described his birthplace as having become ‘a valley of death’ in his last Facebook post.
Earlier, India’s Ministry of External Affairs had expressed serious concern over the killing of a Hindu youth in Bangladesh, linking the issue to the wider question of minority safety and law and order in the country.
The MEA noted that independent assessments have documented over 2,900 incidents of violence against minorities during the tenure of Bangladesh’s interim government led by Muhammad Yunus, including cases of killings, arson and land grabbing.
Key Takeaways
- The increasing violence against minorities in Bangladesh poses significant concerns for their safety and well-being.
- Social media activity can have dire consequences, particularly for those speaking out against violence.
- The trend of attacks on minorities underscores the need for stronger law enforcement and protection measures.
