7 arrested so far in Bangladesh scrap trader's lynching case

At least seven people have been arrested so far, and a nationwide combing operation was launched in Bangladesh on Sunday in connection with the killing of a scrap trader here, Home Affairs Adviser Lieutenant General (retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury said.

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Chowdhury said the operation was launched to maintain law and order and ensure pre-election stability following the gruesome murder of Lal Chand alias Sohag near Mitford Hospital on July 9, Prothom Alo reported.

"The murder that took place in Mitford, the capital, is extremely tragic and barbaric. Such incidents have no place in a civilised society,” he said, adding that the Detective Branch (DB) of police arrested two more accused in the case on Saturday night.

He said the intelligence agencies were working tirelessly to arrest the other accused and that none would be spared, irrespective of their political identity.

“The government believes criminals are criminals. No criminal will be spared regardless of their political affiliation. No criminal will get shelter,” he said.

Chowdhury said steps had been taken to shift the Mitford murder case to the Speedy Trial Tribunal.

A video of the incident that went viral on Thursday showed the scrap vendor being lynched with chunks of concrete slabs at Rojoni Ghosh Lane near Mitford Hospital following a business feud.

After confirming his death, the attackers danced on his body. Police earlier arrested five people for their alleged involvement in the lynching.

Titon Gazi, who was directly involved in the killing, is on a five-day police remand.

The lynching sparked outrage across Bangladesh, even as hundreds of students took to the streets here on Saturday, accusing the interim government of failure to contain mob violence.

In another such incident earlier this month, a woman and her son and daughter were beaten to death at central Cumilla's Muradnagar area for their alleged involvement in drug dealing.

Bangladesh has seen a surge of mob killings since August 2024, when the then-prime minister Sheikh Hasina's 16-year-long Awami League regime was ousted in a violent movement spearheaded by Students Against Discrimination (SAD).