Dhaka, Oct 3 (IANS) Bangladesh is witnessing a disturbing rise in mob attacks and vandalism, with almost anyone vulnerable to being targeted day or night, while a stream of narratives emerges afterwards to justify the violence, a report has stated.
It noted that whether it is the breaking of hundreds of shrines and khanqahs (Sufi centres) or the recent vandalism of a star content creator’s studio, there is no shortage of voices ready to justify such acts, reflecting a disturbing spread of anarchy and societal decay.
“The dream of seeing and building a prosperous Bangladesh is an old one. It is not just in speeches or literature; thousands of people have sacrificed their lives for this dream at various times. Many people have pursued this dream to the extent of neglecting their personal duties in building professional lives. The welfare of the country became more important to them than the desires of those close to them. This has happened in many other countries too. However, in the case of Bangladesh, that dream has repeatedly remained elusive,” a report in Bangladeshi daily Prothom Alo reported.
Citing Bangladesh’s newspaper ‘New Age,’ it said the River Police recovered more than 900 bodies from rivers over the past 20 months, with the highest number found in waterways in the Dhaka region.
Additionally, Bangladeshi Bengali-language daily Bhorer Kagoj recorded 723 cases or complaints of extortion filed at police stations across the capital during the first eight months of this year. Of the complaints investigated, 85 per cent were found to be substantiated. In both cases, the information was sourced from the police, the report mentioned.
“Only a fraction of actual crimes in Bangladesh’s society make it to police attention. Often, to avoid further hassle, victims do not report their complaints. In such cases, these reports may seem like the tip of a terrifying iceberg. This also raises the question: if this is the condition in the capital and its surroundings, what is happening in distant villages?” it questioned.
According to the report, the reality is that after 2024, no political order can survive unless it addresses the public’s hunger for justice, ensures equitable distribution of resources, and reforms laws and administration in the public interest. Yet, it said, for precisely that reason, the existing politics remains unwilling to undertake such reforms.
“Much has already become clear from the Prevention of Forced Disappearances Act, the Human Rights Commission Act, the reshuffling in the name of RAB, the nature and formation of parliamentary standing committees, and the unclear and dangerous provisions of the draft cyber law,” the report noted.
Earlier this week, Bangladesh’s Awami League alleged that the law and order situation in the country has collapsed under the ruling BNP government, citing alarming records of murder, rape, mob killings and enforced disappearances.
The party accused Bangladesh Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed of prioritising political retaliation over law and order, saying that despite the deteriorating situation, he had appeared on a stage, boasting about eliminating the Awami League and even announcing rewards for doing so.
“Maintaining law and order is the responsibility of the Home Ministry. When a minister, having failed to fulfill that responsibility, instead begins announcing rewards for political arrests, it becomes clear that, for this government, the safety and security of the people are not the priority. Political retaliation is,” it stated.
–IANS
scor/as