A horrific act of violence has claimed the life of Chanchal Chandra Bhowmik, a 23-year-old Hindu mechanic, in Narsingdi, Bangladesh.
Bhowmik was sleeping inside a vehicle repair workshop at the Khanabari Mosque Market when unidentified assailants allegedly set the building on fire from the outside. The blaze, fueled by stored petrol and engine oil, rapidly engulfed the structure, trapping Bhowmik behind locked shutters. Fire service personnel eventually broke into the premises, but Bhowmik had already succumbed to severe burns and suffocation.
CCTV footage from the scene reportedly shows a suspect gathering lubricant-soaked materials and igniting them in front of the garage before fleeing. The victim’s family and local residents have labelled the incident a premeditated murder, occurring amidst a surge of communal tension ahead of the February 12 general elections. This tragedy follows a series of attacks on the Hindu minority, including the recent beating of a shop owner in Gazipur and the stabbing of an auto-rickshaw driver in Feni. While the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government maintains that such incidents are often criminal rather than communal, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs has expressed "grave concern" over the safety of the nearly 13 million Hindus living in the country.
