Bangladesh Police have arrested Imam Yasin Arafat as a prime suspect in the lynching and burning of garment worker Dipu Chandra Das. Arafat was apprehended in the Sarulia area of Demra, Dhaka, with assistance from the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP)
Das was lynched by a mob in Bhaluka, Mymensingh, on December 18, following the unrest in Bangladesh that began with the killing of Sharif Osman Hadi, a 32-year-old student leader.
The killing occurred on December 18 in Bhaluka, Mymensingh, amid nationwide unrest triggered by the death of student leader Sharif Osman Hadi. Additional Superintendent of Police Abdullah Al Mamun stated that Yasin allegedly incited a crowd at the Pioneer Factory gate using religious slogans. The mob reportedly assaulted Das before dragging him to the Square Masterbari area, where he was tied to a tree and set on fire. To date, 21 individuals have been arrested, with nine providing confessional statements, as reported by the Dhaka Tribune.
Police said Yasin had been in hiding since the incident.
The death of Das is part of a spike in communal violence documented by the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council. In December alone, the Council recorded 51 incidents, including 10 murders, 23 cases of arson and looting, and several instances of torture based on blasphemy allegations. This trend continued into the new year; on January 8, a 25-year-old Hindu man drowned in Naogaon while fleeing a chasing mob.
Veteran journalist Deep Halder described the public nature of these killings as reminiscent of IS or Taliban in a quote he gave the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. “Thousands of Hizb-ut-Tahrir activists have defied barricades, clashed with cops inside Dhaka during such marches. The Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami has called for the nation to be run by Sharia law.”
Amid criticism that the interim Yunus government has failed to provide adequate protection, minority leaders met with BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman on January 3. They presented an eight-point demand for security and justice. While Rahman promised that rights would be protected regardless of faith, it is yet to be seen if his words can be converted into action.
