8 Hindus murdered in the Islamic Republic of Bangladesh in less than a month: Read about the victims and why these killings are just the tip of the iceberg

Bangladesh has been witnessing a drastic rise in atrocities on Hindus ever since the undemocratic ouster of Sheikh Hasina as the Prime Minister in August 2024.

With federal elections just around the corner, the Muhammad Yunus regime has given a free hand to violent Muslim mobs and extremist elements to unleash chaos and unrest in the country.

In December alone, at least 8 Hindus have been slaughtered in the Islamic Republic of Bangladesh. The situation has become extremely grim and vulnerable for the already persecuted minority community.

Prantosh Karmakar

On 2nd December, a Hindu man named Prantos Karmakar (42) was gunned down in Narsingdi district of Bangladesh. He was the owner of a jewellery shop.

According to reports, a group of ‘unidentified’ men wearing masks called the victim out of his home.

Karmakar was thereafter taken to the playground of the Dighliyakandi Government Primary School and shot in the chest at point-blank range. The attackers fled the crime scene soon after.

The victim was first admitted to the Raipura Upazila Health Complex and later shifted to Narsingdi Sadar Hospital but he succumbed to his injuries.

As per the local police, the motive and identity of the perpetrators are unclear, and that a probe has been initiated into the matter.

Utpal Sarkar

A 35-year-old Hindu fish trader named Utpal Sarkar was attacked and killed in the wee hours of the morning of 5th December. The incident occurred in Saltha upazila in the Faridpur district of Bangladesh.

According to reports, he was travelling in a van at the time of the incident. The attackers stopped the van, and stabbed the victim in the chest.

They also looted the money that Utpal Sarkar had in his possession before fleeing the crime scene.

Interestingly, the attackers left the van driver, Firoz Molla, unharmed. He was only blindfolded and tied to a bridge. Later, local residents rescued Molla and informed the police.

The cops thereafter sent the bloodied body of the Hindu fish trader to the Faridpur Medical College Hospital. According to the police, 2-3 people were involved in the murder of Utpal Sarkar.

“An investigation is under way. The actual motive will be known once the inquiry is complete,” remarked KM Maruf Hasan.

Jogesh Chandra Roy and Suborna Roy

An elderly Hindu man named Jogesh Chandra Roy (75), who fought for the Independence of Bangladesh in 1971, was hacked to death at his residence on the night of 7th December.

His wife, Suborno Roy (60), was also killed by the attackers. The incident took place in the Rangpur district of Bangladesh. Their dead bodies (with slit throats) were discovered by the neighbours in the morning.

According to reports, the body of Jogesh Chandra Roy was found in the dining room while the body of Suborno Roy was discovered in the kitchen.

As per the Awami League, the gruesome murder of the Hindu couple has been carried out by the Jamaat-e-Islami, who were opposed to the Independence Movement.

This is despite the fact that 2 children of Jogesh Chandra Roy and Suborno Roy are members of the Bangladesh police force.

Shanto Das

On 12th December, the police recovered the body of a Hindu man named Shanto Das from a cornfield in Homna upazila in Comilla district of Bangladesh.

According to his reports, the victim was an auto rickshaw driver by occupation and a member of the village police force.

While speaking about the incident, his father Arun Chandra Das stated, “My son Shanto drove an autorickshaw. We were not able to communicate with him after Thursay evening.”

“In the morning, we learnt that his body was found in a cornfield. We have heard that his autorickshaw has yet to be found. I think they killed my son to steal his autorickshaw,” he added.

The victim’s throat was slit, and his neck had stab wounds. The police recovered the body of Shanto Das and sent it to the Comilla Medical College Hospital for autopsy.

Dipu Chandra Das

On 18th December, a young Hindu man was lynched by a violent Muslim mob in Bhaluka village in Mymensingh district of Bangladesh. The victim was identified as 27-year-old Dipu Chandra Das.

The victim was thrashed, tied to a tree and then set on fire. A gut-wrenching video of the incident had gone viral on social media.

Dipu Chandra Das worked as a labourer in a garment factory. Following a workplace dispute, he was falsely accused of ‘insulting’ Prophet Muhammad and committing blasphemy.

The manager of the factory forced Das to resign and handed him over to a violent Muslim mob so that he could be killed.

The brutal lynching of the Hindu man was reminiscent of a similar instance of mob violence in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

Amrit Mondal

On 24th December, another Hindu man named Amrit Mondal was beaten to death by a frenzied mob in Bangladesh. The incident occurred in Pangsha upazila in Rajbari district of Bangladesh.

The victim was just 29 years old. He was a resident of Hosendanga village. Amrit Mondal was rushed to the hospital in a critical condition, but he succumbed to his injuries.

His body was later sent to the Rajbari Sadar Hospital morgue for post-mortem. Following the killing of the Hindu man, Muhammad Yunus tried to rationalise his lynching by branding him Amrit Mondal as a ‘criminal.’

Besides, the ‘chief advisor’ to the interim government also downplayed the ‘communal angle’ in the case.

Pintu Akanda

On 23rd December, the dead body of a 35-year-old Hindu man named Pintu Akanda was recovered from a microbus in Adamdighi upazila in Bogura district of Bangladesh.

He was abducted a day earlier at gunpoint by 4 ‘unidentified’ attackers. The victim was a businessman and the owner of a Lotto showroom.

As per preliminary reports, Pintu Akanda was strangled to death. In a statement, ASP Asif Hossain said, “We primarily suspect that Pintu was strangled after being abducted at gunpoint. We are currently conducting the inquest.”

The victim’s family has filed a complaint with the police. A CCTV footage of the abduction has now surfaced on social media.

In the video, 4 masked men could be seen pointing a weapon at Pintu and taking him out of his showroom. The victim was then forced to sit inside the vehicle.

Conclusion

Besides the murder of the 8 Hindus, there have been several cases of harassment, assault and vandalism in the past few weeks.

For instance, the residence of a Hindu journalist named Sushanta Dasgupta was vandalised in Sylhet on 19th December. His sister and mother escaped narrowly from the onslaught by a Muslim mob. In another case, a Hindu rickshaw puller was thrashed for wearing a sacred red thread on his wrist. He was accused of being a RA&W agent and arrested by the police.

In June this year, OpIndia had reported 13 cases where Hindus were attacked, targeted under the false pretext of blasphemy. The situation has now

The 8 cases mentioned above are the ones which have been reported in the local media. There are several undated videos of atrocities on Hindu minorities which have come to light in recent times.

As such, the count of Hindus killed in this month alone is likely more than a dozen. The reported crimes only represent a fraction of the actual incidents.

Although the reported crimes represent the tip of the iceberg, it is enough for us to understand the deep rot of radical Islamism within the Bangladeshi society.