Dhaka. The ongoing violence against the minority Hindu community in Bangladesh is showing no signs of stopping. The brutal murders of two Hindu men within the last 24 hours have brought communal tensions to a breaking point across the country. In the latest incidents, a grocery businessman and an ice factory owner cum journalist have been targeted. These killings are the sixth in a series of targeted killings of members of the Hindu community in the last 18 days, which has created a deep wave of insecurity and fear among the local minorities.
The first incident took place at Chorsindoor market in Palash upazila of Narsingdi district on Monday night at around 10 pm. Sharat Chakraborty Mani (also known as Moni Chakraborty), 40, who runs his grocery shop here, was attacked by unidentified assailants while he was at his shop. According to eyewitnesses, the attackers attacked them with sharp weapons and fled. Critically injured Mani was immediately taken to the hospital, where doctors declared him dead. This incident, which happened so close to the capital Dhaka, has raised serious questions on the security arrangements. Local people believe that this attack was carried out purely because of religious identity. A few hours before this, another sensational incident took place in Manirampur Upazila of Jashore district at around 6 pm on Monday evening. 45 year old Rana Pratap Bairagi was shot dead in Kopaliya market here. Rana Pratap was the owner of an ice factory as well as the executive editor of a local newspaper. It is being told that some attackers riding a motorcycle reached his factory and called him outside on the pretext of talking. He was then taken to a deserted street, where after an argument he was shot several times in the head and his throat was slit. Police recovered seven empty cartridges from the scene and confirmed that three bullets had hit him in the head.
The events of the last 18 days paint a dire picture of the situation of minorities in Bangladesh. This period of violence started with the murder of Dipu Chandra Das by beating and burning in Mymensingh on 18 December 2025. After this, there were fatal attacks on Amrit Mandal in Rajbari on 24 December, Bajendra Biswas working in a garment factory on 30 December and Khokan Chandra Das in Shariatpur on 31 December, in which Khokan died during treatment. Organizations such as the Hindu Buddhist Christian Oikya Parishad have warned that fundamentalist groups are carrying out systematic attacks to intimidate minorities and force them to leave the country. The background of these attacks is said to be related to the anti-India protests that started after the murder of a radical student leader in December 2025, which gradually took a communal tone. The administration of the present interim government is facing serious allegations of failing to protect the minorities. While the government is terming some cases as personal enmity or criminal incidents, international human rights organizations have termed it as a failure of law and order motivated by religious fanaticism. India has also expressed deep concern over these incidents, calling it a serious humanitarian issue. At present, heavy police force is deployed in the entire affected area, but the insecurity prevailing within the community is not showing any signs of decreasing.
