Why Did Protests Erupt in Bangladesh After a Trader's Lynching?

Dhaka, July 12 (NationPress) Protests have surged across various college campuses and the streets of Bangladesh's capital, Dhaka, in response to the horrific killing of a scrap metal trader, Lal Chand alias Sohag, in broad daylight near the Sir Salimullah Medical College (Mitford) Hospital on July 9.

As reported by local media, the 39-year-old trader was brutally beaten and stoned to death with concrete blocks by a group of assailants near the hospital's third gate around 6 p.m. on Wednesday, allegedly for refusing to pay extortion money.

The shocking murder, captured on camera and widely shared on social media, sparked widespread outrage.

Student organizations mobilized for mass protests at institutions such as Dhaka University (DU), Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), Jagannath University, Jahangirnagar University, and Rajshahi University on Friday.

Allegations have emerged that members of the Jubo Dal, the youth wing of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), were implicated in the lynching, executing the attack over a dispute regarding extortion, as reported by Bangladeshi newspaper The Daily Star.

Bin Yamin Molla, president of the Bangladesh Student Rights Council, stated to The Dhaka Tribune, 'Today, students are protesting the murder of Sohag just as they did during the Awami League's tenure. The BNP has failed to control its own leaders and activists. They were oppressed for the last 16 years, but if the oppressed now become the oppressors.'

DU student AB Zubayer echoed similar views, accusing BNP activists of transforming the country into a refuge for extortionists and criminals.

'The BNP leaders and activists are engaging in extortion, rape, and murder across the country,' he asserted.

Protesters accused Jubo Dal members of stoning Sohag to death and then celebrating on his body. They claimed that this murder exemplifies the disintegration of law and order under the current BNP-supported regime.

Speakers at various protests criticized the BNP for failing to rein in its youth factions, who they allege are embroiled in violent internal conflicts over extortion and territorial dominance.

Demonstrators also alleged the BNP has been responsible for nearly 100 killings in the past ten months, demanding investigations and justice for each death.

Ironically, another student faction linked to the BNP, the Bangladesh Jatiyotabadi Chhatra Dal, also marched at Dhaka University on Friday, calling for accountability for the killers.

'Since Hasina's fall, BNP leaders have been clashing among themselves over business control, leading to murders. BNP thinks expulsion is sufficient, but we demand they face trial,' said Saikat Arif, President of the Chhatra Federation, to The Daily Star.

The party of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the Awami League, also condemned the lynching vehemently. In a post on X, the party claimed that videos of the 'brutal murders' reveal mob rule under the Yunus regime.

The party further criticized the public's inaction during the incident.

'Local businessmen and onlookers stood by during the incident, with some quickly leaving the scene, but no one intervened while over a dozen attackers took turns assaulting Sohag with stones and bricks to ensure his death. Even the Ansar members stationed at the hospital gate were indifferent,' it stated.

The nation grapples with the shocking visuals of the lynching, while public pressure intensifies on the Muhammad Yunus-led interim administration and law enforcement to ensure justice for the perpetrators.