Ten arrested over lynching of Hindu man in Bangladesh as unrest keeps country on edge

10 people feature been arrested in connectedness with the lynching of a hindustani garment mill worker in Bangladesh, interim government chief adviser Muhammad Yunus said on Saturday, amid continuing unrest and heightened security concerns across the country.

The victim, Dipu Chandra Das, a 25-year-old factory worker, was lynched to death on Thursday in the Bhaluka area of Mymensingh over alleged blasphemy. According to police, Das was first beaten by a mob outside his workplace, hanged from a tree and later left by the side of the Dhaka–Mymensingh highway. The crowd subsequently set his body on fire.

In a statement posted on X, Yunus said seven of the accused were arrested by the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and three by the police. The arrests followed coordinated operations at multiple locations, with the ages of those detained ranging from 19 to 46.

Police recovered Das’s body and sent it to the Mymensingh Medical College morgue for an autopsy.

The interim government condemned the killing on Friday, saying there was “no space for such violence in the new Bangladesh” and vowing that those responsible would not be spared.

The lynching comes against the backdrop of widespread unrest following the death of radical student leader Sharif Osman Hadi, who succumbed to gunshot injuries in a Singapore hospital on Thursday. His death triggered violent protests, some of which took on overt anti-India overtones.

Bangladesh remained tense on Friday after demonstrations near the Indian high commission in Dhaka and assistant high commissions in Chittagong, Khulna and Rajshahi. Offices of several newspapers, including the influential The Daily Star, were attacked, and fears grew of further violence ahead of Hadi’s funeral.

The caretaker government declared Saturday a day of state mourning for Hadi and urged citizens to reject mob violence.

While condemning intimidation, arson and attacks on life and property, the administration warned that the country’s democratic transition “must not be derailed by those few who thrive on chaos and reject peace”.

Security officials said protests near Indian diplomatic missions were pushed back by police and other forces, and that all Indian diplomats and officials were safe.

However, people familiar with the situation said authorities had failed to act swiftly in recent days and intervened only when protesters came close to the missions.

On Wednesday, Bangladesh’s high commissioner to India was summoned by New Delhi to convey concerns over the deteriorating security situation and threats to Indian missions. Indian officials said they expect the interim government to ensure the safety of diplomatic posts.

Four people, including two police personnel, were injured during clashes outside the Indian assistant high commission in Chittagong late on Thursday, when protesters allegedly lobbed bricks and vandalised the premises. Police detained 12 people under the Anti-Terrorism Act, according to officials.

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