Bangladesh’s Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) has apprehended seven suspects in connection with the brutal lynching of 27-year-old Hindu man, Dipu Chandra Das. The Chief Advisor of the Government of Bangladesh confirmed the arrests on Saturday, detailing the individuals taken into custody.
The arrested include Md. Limon Sarkar (19), Md. Tarek Hossain, Md. Manik Mia, Ershad Ali (39), Nijum Uddin (20), Alomgir Hossain, and Md. Miraj Hossain Akon. RAB-14 conducted targeted operations across multiple locations to detain the suspects, according to the Chief Advisor’s post on X.
Details of the Attack
The arrests follow a horrifying incident two days ago when Das, a garment factory worker and follower of Sanatan Dharma, was accused of making derogatory remarks about Prophet Muhammad. Around 9 pm, a mob reportedly beat him to death, tied his body to a tree, and set it ablaze. Local police arrived later, brought the situation under control, and recovered Das’s body.
The interim government, led by Muhammad Yunus, condemned the lynching and emphasised that mob violence has no place in a “New Bangladesh.” Officials vowed that those responsible would face the full force of the law.
A Context of Rising Tensions
The attack on Das unfolded amid nationwide unrest in Bangladesh following the death of radical political activist Sharif Osman Hadi. Hadi, who had been shot in the head by masked assailants during his election campaign in Dhaka, passed away in a Singapore hospital after six days of intensive treatment. The country has been on edge since the incident, with protests and security concerns escalating across several regions.
Reactions from India
The lynching also sparked outrage in West Bengal, where the state unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) condemned the incident. The party highlighted the safety concerns of Hindu minorities in Bangladesh and drew a comparison to the treatment of Hindus under the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal.
“This is how a Hindu, Dipu Chandra Das, was lynched, hanged, and burnt in Bangladesh last night. This is not just about Dipu Chandra Das in Bangladesh; it is also about Hargobindo Das and Chandan Das, who faced the same fate in West Bengal under Mamata. Whether in West Bengal under Mamata or in Bangladesh under Yunus, they were killed because they were Hindu,” the state BJP wrote on X.