At least 74 people died in Bangladesh between April and June 2025 — 33 in mob attacks and 41 in political violence — while 970 others were injured, according to a quarterly report by Dhaka-based human rights organisation Odhikar. The findings, cited by Bangladesh's leading newspaper The Daily Star, paint a deeply troubling picture of eroding institutional trust and unchecked street justice across the country.

Mob Killings and the Justice Vacuum

Odhikar's report found that most of the 33 mob-attack victims were beaten to death on suspicion of theft or robbery. Others were killed during informal village arbitration proceedings or over accusations of hurting religious sentiments. The rights body noted that these incidents reflect the persistent erosion of public trust in law enforcement and the formal justice system, driving communities to take the law into their own hands.

This pattern is not new to Bangladesh — mob justice has recurred across successive governments, often in areas where police presence is thin and court processes are seen as inaccessible or corrupt.

BNP Infighting Dominates Political Violence

Of the 41 politically motivated deaths, a significant share stemmed from internal party conflict. The report recorded 57 incidents of intra-party clashes within the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), leaving 4 dead and 400 injured. A further two incidents within the National Citizen Party (NCP) left 16 people injured.

According to Odhikar, the BNP infighting was largely driven by disputes over extortion, territorial dominance, the sale of excavated soil, local election nominations, party conferences, and political programmes. Firearms and other lethal weapons were reportedly used in several of these incidents. The rights group further alleged that BNP leaders and activists were involved in a range of criminal activities — including land grabbing, abduction, rape, attacks on educational institutions and government offices, interference with police operations, and assaults on political opponents.

Rape, Prison Crisis, and Custodial Deaths

The report documented 255 rape victims during the quarter, comprising 93 women and 161 girls. Odhikar noted that justice in rape cases remains slow due to inadequate DNA testing facilities, delayed medical reports, the absence of legal protections for victims and witnesses, and severe court backlogs.

Bangladesh's 75 prisons held over 85,000 inmates as of 17 May, against a stated capacity of only 43,157 — nearly double the designed limit. Overcrowding, inadequate nutrition, and a shortage of doctors were cited as factors behind the deaths of 16 prisoners from illness during the quarter.

The report also documented three extrajudicial killings allegedly carried out by state agencies: one person was reportedly tortured to death by personnel from Bangladesh's Detective Branch, another was beaten to death during a Department of Narcotics Control operation, and a fisherman was allegedly shot dead by a Forest Department patrol team.

Press Freedom Under Pressure

Journalists were also targeted during the period, with 17 injured, five assaulted, four attacked, and seven threatened while performing their professional duties, according to the report.

Odhikar's Demands

Odhikar has called for an independent probe into alleged extrajudicial killings, custodial torture, and other abuses by Bangladesh's law enforcement agencies, and demanded accountability for those responsible. The organisation's findings arrive at a time of heightened political uncertainty in Bangladesh, with institutional safeguards under strain. Whether the interim administration acts on these recommendations will be closely watched by regional human rights observers.