The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), the Hasina-era predominant opposition which many see at this time as a front-runner for the approaching elections, is going through a turbulent interval amid nationwide protests over allegations that the social gathering was concerned in killings and rampant extortion.
Public outrage reached a boiling level following the murder of an area dealer, Chand Mia alias Sohag, on July 9 in broad daylight on the premises of Sir Salimullah Medical College Mitford Hospital in Dhaka’s Chawkbazar space. The assault was carried out by native leaders and activists of the BNP’s pupil and youth wing.
According to eyewitnesses and CCTV footage that surfaced two days after the incident, the attackers dragged Sohag’s bloodied physique onto the adjoining highway and continued the assault. The video reveals a number of males stomping on his chest, punching his face, and squashing his lifeless physique with giant concrete blocks. Despite the presence of hospital workers, safety guards and a whole bunch of individuals, nobody intervened. The killing, reportedly linked to a turf dispute over management of the native scrap steel and copper wire commerce, has despatched shockwaves throughout the capital and past.
A murder case was filed with Kotwali Police Station in the capital by the sufferer’s sister. Home Affairs Adviser Lt. Gen. (retd) Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury on Saturday mentioned that 5 folks have been arrested in reference to the incident. “It’s not just the Mitford case — police are taking immediate action in such incidents across the country. However, the Mitford incident is deeply regrettable. In a civilised nation, such brutality is unacceptable”, the adviser mentioned.
Five activists from three affiliated wings of BNP have been expelled for all times over their alleged involvement in the incident.
Protests, rallies held
In response to the incident, 1000’s of college and faculty college students, members of assorted pupil organisations and political events, and odd residents took to the streets. Students from universities throughout the nation held protest marches and rallies, expressing frustration over what they described as ongoing extortion and terrorism throughout Bangladesh.
Protesters accuse BNP activists of filling the facility vacuum left by the Awami League-led authorities, taking management of extortion rackets and asserting violent dominance over native companies and territories. Chanting slogans corresponding to “Tarique will go like Sheikh Hasina,” “Money extorted in Paltan, shares fly to London,” and “The new killer follows the path of the old killer,” demonstrators positioned direct blame on BNP’s performing chairman Tarique Rahman, who is predicated in London.
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir expressed deep concern over the killing. He warned that the failure to make sure strict punishment for these concerned would solely deepen the tradition of impunity and push society additional into darkness. “This barbaric act is not just the loss of a life — it reflects a deep failure in ensuring state security, upholding citizens’ rights, and maintaining law and order. Our party’s principles, ideals, and politics have no connection whatsoever with terrorism or brutality. No matter who the perpetrator is, they must never be above the law and justice,” Mr. Alamgir mentioned.
However, BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi alleged that sure political events are trying to use the incident by giving it a political color for their very own achieve.
Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami condemned the killing. In a press release, the social gathering’s Secretary General and former MP Mia Golam Parwar mentioned a number of nationwide dailies reported that leaders of the Chawkbazar unit of Jubo Dal (BNP’s youth wing) had demanded a big sum of extortion cash from the sufferer. When he refused, Jubo Dal’s terrorists carried out the killing, he alleged.
“The nation is now asking: how safe are people’s lives and property in the hands of a party whose leaders shelter extortionists and criminals while preaching about politics?” Mr. Parwar requested. “If such a party comes to power, the country, the people, and the state can never be safe. This incident once again echoes the footsteps of fallen fascism.”
Upcoming elections
Bangladesh is prone to maintain common elections in the primary half of 2026 and the BNP is seen as a frontrunner by many. The Islamist Jamaat can also be making ready to contest the elections, whereas the Awami League has been banned by the interim authorities. The National Citizens Party, shaped by the coed leaders who led anti-Hasina protests, is a brand new entrant.
As election fever is step by step gripping the nation, the BNP is grappling with a number of points, together with inside infighting, political violence, and alleged extortion by social gathering leaders. More than a thousand leaders and activists have already been expelled for his or her involvement in such actions. However, these disciplinary actions have largely proved ineffective, as social gathering members proceed to have interaction in comparable misconduct. In 2024, following the autumn of the Hasina-led authorities, violence inside BNP circles intensified, resulting in at the least 1,697 accidents and 31 deaths.
According to a report by the Human Rights Support Society (HRSS), at the least 79 folks have been killed and round 4,124 injured in 529 incidents of political violence throughout Bangladesh in the previous six months. The HRSS attributes a lot of the violence to turf wars, political vendettas, inside disputes over social gathering committee formations, extortion, and makes an attempt to grab management of assorted institutions. Of the 529 incidents recorded, 445 have been linked to inside conflicts throughout the BNP or clashes involving BNP and different political events. Specifically, 302 incidents stemmed from the BNP’s inside feuds, ensuing in 46 deaths and at the least 2,834 accidents.
Meanwhile, stability is but to be totally restored throughout the nation, as mob violence continues to assert lives at an alarming charge. Human rights organisations doc that from September 2024 to June 2025, at the least 253 incidents of mob violence occurred, ensuing in 163 deaths and 312 accidents. Despite repeated assurances from regulation enforcement companies, in most circumstances the perpetrators have remained past the attain of justice.
While speaking on the countrywide protests in opposition to the BNP, Nazmul Islam, a political scientist, instructed The Hindu that whereas the unrest could not trigger a serious disaster for the social gathering, it should undoubtedly have a right away influence on public notion. “We must recognise that the BNP remains a key political party in the current political context of Bangladesh. However, this status also brings significant challenges in managing and controlling its grassroots supporters,” mentioned Mr. Islam.
“After a long hiatus, BNP activists have had the opportunity to reengage in open political activity, but this resurgence also presents new challenges for party leadership, particularly in terms of internal discipline. One of the underlying issues is the BNP’s limited opportunity in recent years to practise internal democratic governance, which has weakened their control mechanisms,” he added.
