A brutal mob lynching of a Hindu man has reignited fears over the safety of religious minorities in Bangladesh, as fresh unrest grips the country following the death of a prominent anti-India Islamist leader.
Dipu Chandra Das, a garment factory worker from Mymensingh, was beaten to death on Thursday night after being accused of insulting Islam. The killing came as violent protests erupted in parts of Dhaka, more than 100 kilometres away, where demonstrators demanding justice for the assassination of Osman Sharif Hadi vandalised public landmarks.
A killing that shocked even a hardened nation
After the assault, Das’s body was tied to a tree and set ablaze, according to accounts from the area. Videos circulating on social media showed dozens of people celebrating the killing, scenes that have deepened outrage and alarm across the region.
Speaking to NDTV, the victim’s father, Ravilal Das, struggled to hold back despair as he described how he learned of his son’s death, through Facebook. Despite condemnation from Muhammad Yunus’s interim government and orders for action, the family says it has received no reassurance from authorities.
“No one from the government has given any assurance. No one said anything,” he said.
‘They tied him to a tree and burned him’
Ravilal Das recounted how rumours first surfaced online before neighbours began sharing details. “We started hearing things from Facebook, and then more people were talking about it,” he said. “Someone told me he was beaten badly. Half an hour later, my uncle came and told me they took my son and tied him to a tree.”
What followed, he said, was unbearable to describe. “They poured kerosene on him and set him on fire. His burned body was left outside. They tied the burnt torso and head outside. It was horrible,” he told NDTV from his current location in Bangladesh.
The grieving father said he could not yet confirm which group led the mob attack, noting speculation about Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh or its student wing, Chhatra Shibir. “We can’t say for sure whether they were from Chhatra Shibir or not. Nobody can be certain; it’s what people are saying,” he said.
The lynching has again cast a harsh spotlight on the vulnerability of minorities—particularly Hindus—in Bangladesh. Observers say tensions have intensified since Hadi was shot dead, with his killing becoming a rallying point for hardline Islamist groups ahead of general elections expected in the coming months.
Radical groups ‘taking over the streets’
Mohammad Ali Arafat, a former Member of Parliament and information minister under the Sheikh Hasina government, warned that extremist forces are exploiting protests over Hadi’s death to assert control in public spaces.
In a post on social media platform X, Arafat said Hadi’s supporters held a sit-in at Shahbagh on Friday, December 19, demanding justice. “The program later turned into a gathering dominated by jihadist and radical Islamist elements,” he wrote, naming figures such as Jashimuddin Rahmani and Ataur Rahman Bikrampuri of Towhidi Janata. Leaders from other extremist groups were also present, he said, delivering provocative speeches.
India voices alarm over minority safety
The killing has also drawn sharp reactions from India, which has repeatedly raised concerns about the treatment of minorities in Bangladesh.
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, a senior Opposition leader, described the lynching as “extremely alarming” and urged the Indian government to take note of what she called a pattern of rising violence.
“The news of the brutal murder by a mob of Hindu youth Deepu Chandra Das in Bangladesh is extremely alarming,” she said. “In any civilised society, discrimination, violence, and murder based on religion, caste, identity, etc., are crimes against humanity.”
She called on New Delhi to “firmly raise the issue” of the safety of Hindu, Christian and Buddhist minorities with the Bangladeshi government, as regional and international concern mounts over the latest episode of bloodshed.
