10 arrested over lynching of Hindu man in Bangladesh

Ten people have been arrested in connection with the lynching of a Hindu man in Bangladesh, Chief Adviser of the interim government Muhammad Yunus said on December 20.

The victim, Dipu Chandra Das (25), a garment factory worker, was lynched to death by a mob over alleged blasphemy in Bhaluka in Mymensingh.

Of the 10 arrested, seven were detained by the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and three by the police as suspects in the case, Yunus said in a statement posted on X. He added that joint operations were carried out at multiple locations to apprehend the accused, whose ages range between 19 and 46.

According to police, Das was first assaulted by a mob outside the factory following allegations of blasphemy. He was then hanged from a tree, after which the body was left by the roadside along the Dhaka–Mymensingh highway and later set on fire. Police recovered the body and sent it to the Mymensingh Medical College morgue for autopsy.
The Interim Government of Bangladesh on December 19, strongly condemned the incident, saying there is no place for such violence in the new Bangladesh. “The perpetrators of this heinous crime will not be spared,” the government said in a statement.

The killing comes amid concerns over the safety of minorities in Bangladesh. Members of the Hindu community have reported a series of anti-minority incidents across the country following the ouster of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina in August last year.