The Awami League, NGOs and rights activists have expressed grave concern over the rise in deaths of politicians in prisons, mass arrests, and the filing of false cases, as the country is experiencing mob rule and lawlessness everywhere since the August 5 changeover.
More than 359,000 people have been arrested across the country in the last 10 months since the fall of the Awami League government.
Of them, about 214,000 were arrested from January to May. The highest number of arrests was 45,000 in May alone.
Currently, an average of more than 1,500 people are being arrested every day.
Due to mass arrests and denial of bail, the prisons are overcrowded, now having more than 73,000 prisoners with a capacity of 43,000.
According to the rights group Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), at least 18 under-trial prisoners and 12 convicted persons died mysteriously in seven district jails countrywide in the first four months of 2025.
Among the deceased, the highest number of deaths, 16 people, occurred in the Dhaka division.
Earlier, from August to December, the number of people who died in prisons was 17.
The death of four Awami League leaders in the Bogra jail in just one month created a huge outcry, but the government did not take any steps. Rather, the authorities claimed they had died due to illness and cardiac arrest.
Latest, a leader of the Swechchhasebak League died while in custody in the Cumilla District Jail on Saturday morning.
Imam Hossain Bachchu, 44, is the son of Golam Mawla, and a resident of a Mogoltuli area in the district.
He was the vice-president of the Cumilla Metropolitan unit Swechchhasebak League, the volunteer wing of the Awami League.
Senior Jail Superintendent Halima Khatun said that the deceased felt severe chest pain. Later, he was taken to Cumilla Medical College Hospital, where on-duty doctors declared him dead upon arrival.
Bacchu had been in jail since March 30, following a court order. He was arrested in connection with two cases โ one for murder and another for attempted murder.
Family and party sources said that some activists of the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami tried to strangle him to death when he was taken to the court.
Condemning the death of Imran as a shame, activist Azam Khan said that prisons or police custody are supposed to be the most secure places in a country.
โHowever, this is not the case in Bangladesh, led by Dr Muhammad Yunus. A plethora of prison killings took place in the last nine months while Yunus has been traveling the world as an acclaimed human rights defender,โ he said in a Facebook post.
Hasan Hamid, International Society for Human Rights (ISHR) National Associate & Country Representative, said that it is possible to control such crimes. For this, it is necessary to improve the medical system inside the prison and ensure the safety of prisoners.
โAt the same time, the causes of deaths in custody should be properly investigated and those responsible in the relevant cases should be brought to justice,โ he said.
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