Gosaibari Collegepara in Dhunat Upazila of Bogura was once a symbol of education, culture and peace. But the area has today turned into a town of terror due to the dominance of a teenage gang.
During a human chain held in Collegepara last Saturday, locals stated that they do not feel safe anymore.
The terror has increased since five people were injured in the armed attack on September 11. After the attack, the gang members are filing false cases and going door to door in the dark of night, threatening the locals. The police are also reluctant to take due action.
The locals complain that the teen gangs have been showing dominance in the area for the past year, thanks to the silence of the law enforcement agencies.
Bangladeshis in Trafalgar Square roar, vowing to bring Sheikh Hasina back to power
International scholars decry erosion of intellectual freedom in Bangladesh
Mobocracy is not just a matter of concern for Collegepara, but for the entire country. Criminals are spreading terror not only in Bogura, but in different parts of the country. Their goal is the sameโto create instability, to instil fear in the minds of the people, and to keep Yunus in power.
Meticulously designed mob violence
The mob attacks across Bangladesh are not just sporadic chaos; these are being let happen for political purposes.
Human rights group Manobadhikar Sangskriti Foundation (MSF) has reported that the number of deaths in mob lynchings under the Yunus regime increased in August compared to the previous month, but much of this violence is being carried out by political and extremist groups under the guise of mobs.
Analysts say that this is not only endangering the safety of citizens but also eroding the governmentโs political and moral responsibility.
Minority persecution lacks UN attention, accountability
Elections without Awami League will invite crisis
According to MSF, at least 23 people were beaten to death in August, compared to 16 in July. In most cases, the attackers were labelled as mobs to give them a clean chit.
Recently, the offices of the Jatiya Party (JaPa) were attacked in at least 12 districts, which have been dubbed as mob attacks supported by the Yunus government.
In fact, members of Yunusโ NCP, Gono Odhikar Parishad (GOP), BNP and Jamaat were associated with these coordinated attacks, endorsed by the Yunus regime to implement political objectives.
The mob attacks that are being carried out in the name of religion cannot be taken lightly.
More than 100 Sufi shrines and Darbar Sharifs have been attacked in Bangladesh by radical Islamists, under the common platform of โTouhidi Janata,โ with the support of the Yunus government.
In reality, this so-called Touhidi Janata is comprised of the activists, followers and supporters of the Islamist groups and political parties, like Islami Andolan Bangladesh, Jamaat-e-Islami, Hefazat-e-Islam, Bangladesh Khelafat Majlish, etc., who are allied with the regime.
Awami League condemns brutal torture and persecution inside prisons
People think Yunus government is highly corrupt, says journalist Arshad Mahmud
The regimeโs reactions to these incidents are also very important.
The Yunus government did not even condemn the above-mentioned incidents. Rather, they tried to politically legitimise these attacks. While Yunus himself referred to this planned violence as a โrevolutionary spirited activity,โ his press wing termed these mobs as pressure groups.
According to political analysts, these mobs have become active in the wake of the riots and unrest that erupted in July 2024.
These groups are becoming stronger with foreign funding, support from extremist organisations, like Hizb ut-Tahrir, Jamaโatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), and Ansar al-Islam, and the silent support of some influential circles. Their goal is to maintain unrest by instilling fear in the minds of the people and preventing any resistance.
Sheikh Hasina: Islam is not safe in the hands of Yunus-Jamaat clique
Sheikh Hasina vows to deport razakars to Karachi by ship
Sheikh Hasina asks OHCHR, Amnesty to provide list of 1,400 deceased
Even a top leader of the regimeโs partner BNP, its deputy international affairs secretary Rumeen Farhana, recently said that the government is deliberately patronising the mobs.
She said: โThere have been about 380 mob incidents in the last 365 days. No one will invest or want to live in such a situation. The government is using the mobs for its own interests, because they have no grassroots power.โ
She further said: โInvestment has stopped, and brain drain has increased. Children of educated families are leaving the country. Those responsible in the interim government are enjoying power without fulfilling their responsibilities.โ
According to political observers, the entire country is plagued by terrorism, like the families of Gosaibari Collegepara of Bogura. If no action is taken against mobs, the whole country will soon be in ruins.
English