In another horrifying case of Hindu victimization in Bangladesh, two defenseless Hindu men were lynched by a Muslim mob on the night of Saturday, August 9, 2025, in Taraganj upazila of Rangpur district, after being falsely accused of theft. The incident has triggered arrests, police suspensions, and condemnation from rights groups.
Police and local media identified the victims as Ruplal Das (40), a cobbler from Ghanirampur village, and his relative Pradeep Das (35), from Baluabata village. Both were attacked around 9 p.m. at Burirhat Bottola in Soyar Union while returning from a family visit linked to setting a wedding date for Ruplal’s daughter.
Widely circulated videos and photos on social media show the men pleading for their lives; one can be heard saying, “I am not a thief or a dacoit; I am a cobbler who mends shoes in Taraganj Bazaar.” Despite the pleas, the crowd beat them severely. Ruplal was declared dead at Taraganj Upazila Health Complex, and Pradeep Pradip died later at Rangpur Medical College Hospital.
Police said the lynching followed confusion when two local van-pullers were found unconscious nearby, fueling rumors that the victims had drugged them to steal a vehicle. Eyewitnesses and video evidence indicate that at least one bystander tried to stop the beating and urged the crowd to call the police, to no avail.
The next day, Ruplal’s wife, Bharati (Varoti) Rani, filed a murder case at Taraganj Police Station, naming approximately 700 unidentified people as accused. The filing was confirmed by police and reported by multiple Bangladeshi outlets. Investigators quickly moved to detain suspects. Four men, not surprisingly all Muslims, identified as Aktarul Islam (45), Ebadat Hossain (27), Rafiqul Islam (33), and Mizanur Rahman (22), were arrested after analysis of video footage, and on Thursday, August 14, a Rangpur court placed them on three-day police remand.
Authorities have also taken disciplinary action against law enforcement personnel present in the area during the attack, who did nothing to save the hapless men. Eight police personnel, including Sub-Inspectors Abu Zobayer and Shafiqul Islam and six constables, were suspended for alleged negligence of duty, according to statements attributed to Rangpur Superintendent of Police Abu Saim and corroborated by several outlets. Inspector (Investigation) Rafiqul Islam has been appointed the new investigating officer.
A formal probe body has been formed to investigate the circumstances and official response surrounding the killings, officials told local media, following the suspensions announced on Wednesday night.
The killings sparked anger and grief in the community. Residents blocked the Rangpur–Dinajpur highway on Sunday evening, ending the blockade after assurances from the local administration that justice would be ensured. This disruption and subsequent withdrawal were reported by United News of Bangladesh (UNB) and carried by national media.
Human rights organization Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) condemned the lynchings as a grave violation of constitutional and international human rights standards and urged swift legal action, victim support, and accountability for instigators. ASK further noted that hundreds of people were killed in mob violence between January 1 and August 10, 2025, underscoring an escalating problem beyond the Rangpur incident.
As of Friday, August 15, police say efforts continue to identify additional assailants from video and eyewitness accounts, while the suspended officers await the results of the administrative inquiry. Courts in Rangpur are overseeing the remand of the four arrested suspects as the homicide investigation progresses.
This brutal lynching, however, was not an isolated act of mob brutality; it was the latest in a disturbing pattern of targeted violence against the Hindu minority in Bangladesh over the past year. The Rangpur killings follow a well-tested script closely, which involves rumor-fueled vigilantism that turns lethal while law enforcement fails to protect the victims.
One such case occurred in Tangail on April 5, 2025, when Akhil Chandra Mondal, a Hindu jeweller, was dragged from his shop, stripped, and beaten by a mob accusing him of insulting Islam. Videos and photos of the mob attack show the lone victim being paraded almost naked as he pleaded for his life. Instead of arresting the attackers, police detained Akhil, in a move widely criticized by rights advocates.
Another incident unfolded in Barishal on June 30, 2025, where a Hindu man, Saikat Biswas, faced a violent mob over alleged blasphemy remarks about the Islamic prophet Muhammad. The crowd physically assaulted him before handing him over to the police. Local Hindu groups allege the arrest was made without verifying the claims, reinforcing the perception that authorities side with the accusers in religiously charged cases.
In June 2025, two separate attacks shocked minority rights observers. In Lalmonirhat, a father and son, Paresh Chandra Shil and Bishnu Chandra Shil, were beaten by a Muslim mob that accused them of blasphemy without any evidence. Just days later in Dinajpur, Sohag Das, 24, received death threats after a Facebook post that was allegedly offensive to Muhammad went viral. Islamic groups staged protests demanding Sohag Das’ execution, escalating fears among local Hindus.
The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council has documented 2,442 hate crimes against minorities between August 2024 and June 2025. Activists say the lack of swift, impartial police action, sometimes coupled with outright victim-blaming, emboldens attackers and leaves minority communities feeling abandoned by the state.
In several cases, the immediate police response was to detain the Hindu victim rather than pursue the perpetrators. In others, officers claimed they were outnumbered or arrived too late to intervene, raising questions about both readiness and will. This pattern reflects not just a failure of law enforcement, but a more profound reluctance to confront Islamic vigilantism head-on.
࿗Infidel࿘ says
Memo to Marco Rubio: Add Bangladesh to the list of Travel Ban countries. If Burma is on that list, Bangladesh definitely must be! As an American, I have no fear of Burmese citizens who might legally come here, for whatever reason. It’s completely the opposite w/ Bangladesh citizens, who have shown what they’d do by turning India into a jihadist dump
I AM THE INFIDEL YOUR IMAM WARNED YOU ABOUT says
Infidel: I totally agree with you. Christians, Buddhists and Hindus are being harassed and persecuted by these filthy inbred Bangladeshi muslims. I know how it was and how it is in Bangladesh because I was born in that country and lived 30 years of my life there before immigrating to North America.
Yes….. Bangladesh is just as bad as Pakistan and it should be placed on the Travel Ban list. Bangladeshis and Pakistanis are creating majority of the problems in the UK.
Canada should also not allow any muslim from Bangladesh and Pakistan to enter.
abu taleb says
Better, send Trudeau and his supporters to Bangladesh, Pakistan or other Islamic countries.
James Lincoln says
Infidel,
Secretary of State Marco Rubio should put out a list of acceptable countries whose citizens *may* travel to the United States – as long as there are no individual “red flags”.
All other countries would be banned.
࿗Infidel࿘ says
Yeah, whitelisting countries instead of blacklisting is not a bad idea. A number of criteria may be used – not just their muslim populations, but other criteria, such as their attitudes towards the US, etc. Using that, China certainly would not be included in this Whitelist
James Lincoln says
Thanks for your reply, infidel.
gravenimage says
The only Bangladeshis who should be coming here are persecuted Hindus, Christians, and Sikhs,
࿗Infidel࿘ says
SikhsBuddhists – there are hardly any Sikhs thereThere is a miniscule Sikh population in Pakistan, and there was in Afghanistan before the Taliban took back control
gravenimage says
Bangladesh: 700-strong Muslim mob lynches two Hindu men, police do nothing
…………………………………………….
*Just horrifying*–these poor men and their families–and police, as so often, seem to be complicit.
And note that Das is identifed as a cobbler–seemingly a respectable if not particularly remunerative profession. But Muslims look down on shoes and making or fixing them is deeply looked down on, so often it is Infidels–Hindus or Christians–relegated to these jobs. The same is true of trash collectng and sewer work,
OLD GUY says
And here we are going to vote in Mamdani a muslim to run NY city. And a Somalian to run Minneapolis, are we nuts? These foreign candidates don’t want to help America they want to destroy it. Just look at the other muslims in political office already, most are anti-America and hate what freedom stands for.
ploome says
you write:
” Just look at the other muslims in political office already, most are anti-America and hate what freedom stands for.”
try and do that at any political rally……see what happens
We are not allowed to accurately describe the islamic agenda and behaviors..
accurately describing islam, is considered hate speech or some fabricated phobia