Just a couple of days before the country votes to elect their Prime Minister, a Hindu businessman was killed in Bangladesh's Mymensingh on the night of February 9.
The incident occurred at the same place where another Hindu man, Dipu Chandra Das, was also lynched and burnt.
The victim, 62-year-old Sushen Chandra Sarkar, was a rice trader and lived in Dakshinkanda village. He owned "Bhai Bhai Enterprise" at the intersection of the Bogar Bazar in the sub-district.
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According to the police, the murder took place at 11 pm at the market intersection. Unknown attackers reportedly struck Sarkar with a sharp weapon, left him inside the shop and shut the shutters. They also stole lakhs of rupees from the shop after killing Sarkar, stated NDTV in its report.
Family found him inside shop while searching
Sarkar's family found him covered in blood inside the shop while looking for him, according to the police. He was rushed to Mymensingh Medical College Hospital, where doctors pronounced him dead.
Sujan Sarkar, the victim's son, said the murderers took money from the shop after killing his father. "We have operated a rice business for a long time. No one had any problems with us. The criminals stole several hundred thousand taka from the store after they brutally killed my father," he stated.
Sujan mentioned that the body is in the hospital morgue for a postmortem examination. Legal action is underway and he demanded that his father's killers be identified soon and brought to justice.
Earlier incidents
Earlier this year, in January, a Hindu journalist was shot dead in broad daylight in Bangladesh. The shocking incident happened in a crowded market with many bystanders present. The attackers fired on the victim and fled the scene.
According to Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, an editor at Blitz, the victim was identified as Rana Pratap Bairagi, a journalist for a local daily called BD Khobor.
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On December 31, Khokon Das, a Hindu shop owner, was attacked while returning home from his medical store in Shariatpur district. A mob allegedly stabbed and beat him. The attackers then poured petrol on him and set him on fire. Doctors later pronounced him dead at Dhaka Medical College Hospital.
On 18 December last year, 27-year-old Hindu garment worker Dipu Chandra Das was lynched in Bhaluka, which is in Mymensingh district. Police and media reports stated that he was accused of making insulting remarks about Islam during a factory event.
Investigators later determined that there was no solid evidence to back the claims. Police reported that arrests had been made in connection with the case.
