Samir Kumar Das
Credit: X/@ItzBDHindus
A Hindu autorickshaw driver has been killed by a group of people in Bangladesh’s Chittagong division, marking the latest in a series of attacks on people from the minority community in recent weeks.
The victim, identified as Samir Kumar Das (28), was beaten and stabbed to death by a mob on Sunday (January 11) night.
Das was an autorickshaw driver in the Dagonbhuiyan area of Feni district. The attackers reportedly fled with the vehicle after the assault.
No arrests have been reported so far. According to the police, preliminary findings suggest the incident was a case of murder and robbery.
This incident comes days after a 25-year-old Hindu man died when he jumped into a canal to escape a mob that accused him of theft in Naogaon district in northwestern Bangladesh. Mithun Sarkar, a resident of Bhandarpur village, was chased by locals, who suspected him of stealing, on January 6.
Awami League's Hindu leader dies in police custody
Meanwhile, Proloy Chaki, a musician and cultural affairs secretary of the Awami League’s Pabna district unit, died in prison on Sunday night after reportedly suffering a heart attack. Chaki had been arrested in connection with a case linked to an alleged attack on the anti-discrimination student movement. Supporters of the Awami League have claimed that the charges against him were false.
These deaths have drawn attention to concerns over the safety of Hindus and political detainees in Bangaldesh.
There have been a series of attacks on minorities, including Hindus, in Bangladesh after the killing of radical youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi in December.
Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council recorded 51 incidents of communal violence last month alone. These included 10 murders, 10 cases of theft and robbery, 23 incidents involving the occupation of homes, business establishments, temples, looting and arson. In addition, four more Hindu persons have been killed in January so far, taking the total number of casualties to 14 since December, it said, according to PTI.
A matter of 'grave concern': India
Last month, India said the "unremitting hostilities" against minorities in Bangladesh are a matter of "grave concern" as it demanded punishment for the perpetrators involved in the lynching of Hindu youth Dipu Chandra Das in Mymensingh.
The relations between India and Bangladesh strained after the interim government headed by Muhammad Yunus assumed charge following the collapse of the Sheikh Hasina government.
India has been expressing concerns over attacks on minorities, especially Hindus, in that country.
Though the Yunus-led administration has condemned the minority killings, it has described the incidents as "not communal" and called the death figures "mere exceptions".