The latest statements by Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed condemning “mob culture” ring hollow and reek of selective outrage, especially given the persistent failure to address the widespread atrocities committed against Awami League members and supporters by the members of the BNP-Jamaat since August 2024.
In his remarks on February 18, following a meeting at the Home Ministry, he declared that “mob culture” would no longer be tolerated, warning against road blockades, highway obstructions, and any actions creating public inconvenience in the name of demands.
He emphasised that democratic rights like rallies and assemblies would continue, but unlawful disruptions would face immediate response. He also pledged to rebuild public trust in the police, make the ministry corruption-free, and ensure accountability within law enforcement.
Yet, conspicuously absent from his address was any mention of justice for the victims of the very mob violence and targeted killings that have plagued the country in the “Yunus era”—the period under the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus following the 2024 jihadist-army coup. Reports and allegations point to over 1,000 killings of Awami League members and supporters in mob attacks and targeted incidents since August 2024.
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Various sources, including party compilations and human rights documentation, have cited figures ranging from hundreds to over 500 confirmed deaths attributed to political vengeance, lynchings, and reprisals, often linked to perceived affiliations with the former regime.
Compounding this tragedy are nearly 2,000 alleged false murder cases filed against Awami League activists, often en masse and without thorough investigation, alongside the arbitrary detention of over 400,000 party members (though exact figures vary across reports, with some estimates highlighting tens of thousands in initial waves and ongoing arrests).
The Awami League itself has faced an effective illegal ban on its activities, further stifling political expression from one side while others operate freely.
Beyond political targeting, the post-2024 landscape has seen rampant extortion, looting, and mob attacks on homes, newspaper offices, business establishments, and properties. Minorities—particularly Hindus, non-Sunnis, and women—have endured targeted harassment, temple desecrations, arson, and violence, with documented incidents numbering in the thousands according to minority advocacy groups.
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Reports from 2025 alone cite hundreds of communal or criminal attacks involving minorities, including killings, sexual violence, and forced displacement.
Particularly alarming is the massive scale of sexual violence against children and women, with spikes in reported rapes, gang rapes, and abuses amid the lawlessness, including cases where primary schoolgirls and other minors have been disproportionately victimised.
Salahuddin is also accused of extortion and illegal occupation of businesses and land of the Awami League leaders in Cox’s Bazar and Chittagong during the last 18 months.
Senior journalist Probir Kumar Sarker observes that Minister Ahmed’s focus on ending “mob culture” now, after his government (following elections) has assumed power, conveniently ignores the unchecked impunity that allowed such horrors to flourish under the interim regime.
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His promises to make police “friends of the people” and prioritise law and order in a 180-day plan ring empty when no concrete steps have been outlined to investigate, prosecute, or compensate victims of the preceding chaos.
This selective rhetoric—cracking down on potential future disruptions while turning a blind eye to past and ongoing injustices—undermines any claim to impartial governance. True restoration of law and order demands accountability for all victims, regardless of political affiliation.
Until the government confronts the bloodshed, false cases, detentions, bans, extortion, minority attacks, and sexual violence that have scarred the nation since August 2024, declarations against “mob culture” remain nothing more than empty posturing. Bangladesh deserves justice, not selective amnesia, added the journalist.
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