Grocery shop owner hacked, newspaper editor shot dead: Two Hindu men killed in Bangladesh

Two Hindu men, a grocery shop owner and a newspaper editor, were killed in separate attacks in Bangladesh on January 5, intensifying concerns over the safety of minority communities amid reports of rising insecurity across the country.
In the first incident, 40-year-old Sarat Chakraborty Mani, a Hindu grocery shop owner, was hacked to death by unidentified assailants in Narsingdi district near Dhaka on Monday night. According to Bangladesh-registered newspaper Weekly Blitz and other local media outlets, Mani was attacked while operating his grocery shop at Charsindur Bazaar in Palash Upazila.
Residents and eyewitnesses said the attackers arrived suddenly and assaulted Mani with sharp weapons before fleeing the scene. He sustained critical injuries and was rushed to hospital, where he succumbed to his wounds while undergoing treatment. Police have launched an investigation into the killing, though no arrests have been reported so far.
Local media reports said Mani had earlier expressed fears over the deteriorating law-and-order situation in the country. On December 19, he reportedly posted on Facebook describing his birthplace as having turned into “a valley of death,” voicing concern over violence and insecurity. Investigators are examining whether the social media post has any link to the attack, police sources said.
Hours earlier, another Hindu man was shot dead in public in a separate incident in the Monirampur area of Jessore district. The victim, identified as Rana Pratap Bairagi, was an ice factory owner and the acting editor of the newspaper Dainik BD Khobor, published from Narail.
According to a report by leading Bengali daily Prothom Alo, three assailants arrived on a motorcycle and called Bairagi out from his ice manufacturing factory located at Kapalia Bazar in Monirampur. The attackers then took him to a nearby alley, where they shot him at close range in the head before fleeing the scene. Bairagi died on the spot.
As per reports, Monirampur police station officer-in-charge Md Raziullah Khan told that the body had been recovered and sent for post-mortem examination. “We are investigating the incident. The motive behind the killing has not yet been ascertained,” the officer said, adding that efforts were underway to identify and arrest those responsible.
The twin killings have once again brought focus on the security situation of minority communities in Bangladesh. With these two deaths, at least six Hindu individuals have reportedly been killed in violent incidents across the country in the past 18 days, according to local media accounts.
In recent weeks, multiple reports have highlighted attacks on Hindu homes, businesses and individuals, triggering concern among rights groups and minority organisations. While authorities have maintained that law-and-order is under control, community leaders have alleged that members of minority groups continue to face targeted violence and intimidation in several parts of the country.
Police officials, meanwhile, said investigations were ongoing in all recent cases and assured that those responsible would be brought to justice. However, the lack of arrests so far in several high-profile incidents has continued to fuel anxiety and anger among affected communities.

(Inputs from ANI)