Lynch mobs acting with impunity

Incidents of mob lynching spiked with 21 people beaten to death over the last 38 days, raising public safety concerns.
Although cases have been filed over most of these incidents, only eight people have been held in connection with two cases as of yesterday.

Legal experts and human rights activists say the interim government’s response to lynching has so far been inadequate and that it failed to quickly take decisive actions against the perpetrators.
They also say the rising incidents indicate that law and order has not been properly restored and that perpetrators are not being penalised.
In just three hours between Wednesday night and early yesterday, two people were beaten to death by mobs in the country’s two top universities.
A former Chhatra League leader of Jahangirnagar University Shamim Molla was beaten up by students twice on JU campus. He died of his injuries around 9:15pm on Wednesday.
At Dhaka University, Tofazzal Hossain, known to be a wanderer on campus, died early yesterday after a mob in Fazlul Huq Muslim Hall beat him.
Between January and June this year, 32 people died in the hands of mobs across the country, according to rights organisation Ain o Salish Kendra.
But between August 11 and yesterday, during this interim government’s rule, 21 people were lynched in 14 districts, The Daily Star found scanning media reports.

Of the victims, 12 were beaten to death after mobs accused them of theft, robbery, or mugging while the remaining nine were killed after being accused of other crimes.
Between August 11 and 31, at least nine individuals were killed in six districts. In September so far, 12 more were killed in 10 districts.
The Daily Star contacted 16 officers-in-charge concerned of police stations. They said 11 cases had been filed over the lynching incidents, no case was filed regarding two incidents, and that they knew nothing about the other three incidents.
At least 10 OCs told this newspaper that the frequent transfers of officers coupled with a lack of resources and the overall “chaotic state” made it difficult to properly investigate such cases.
So far, two people were arrested in a case filed for beating Siraj Hawlader dead in Khulna city on September 4.
Yesterday, police detained six DU students over the killing of Tofazzal.
Home Adviser Lt Gen (retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury yesterday regretted the deaths in DU and JU.
Veteran lawyer ZI Khan Panna said, “What does it matter to the public if he [the home adviser] is upset? What steps has he taken…
“Why is there no attention to law and order? Do they [interim government] not read newspapers? Do they not live in this country?”
He said the lack of concrete action by law enforcement agencies and the deteriorating law and order were enabling the mobs.
“These incidents are painful, shameful, and unspeakable,” he added.
Supreme Court lawyer Jyotirmoy Barua said, “After the dictator was deposed through an uprising, a group of people now believe that they can dispense justice as they want, and the authorities would comply with whatever they say.”
Early on, the interim government turned a blind eye to such incidents, he said, citing examples of forcing people, including teachers and judges, to resign.
“A country should run on a system. But we are now seeing people attempting to deliver justice themselves …
“This is a poor example of ensuring law and order. The arrest of just a few people proves how poor a state the law and order is in.
“The interim government’s primary priority should have been ensuring law and order.
“We are seeing that the system is not working. It is repeatedly failing. For them [police], controlling these situations should not be a complicated matter.
“For a permanent solution, the police need to be involved, and their morale must be boosted. These incidents show that the police have failed to restore law and order,” he said.
THE INCIDENTS
In Dhaka, four people were killed within the 38 days — two in Jatrabari, one in Dhaka University, and the other in Jahangirnagar University.
On August 11 and September 15, three people were killed in Dinajpur. In Bogura, two men were killed on August 31 and September 18. A former Chhatra League leader of Rajshahi University was beaten to death on September 7 in Rajshahi.
In Faridpur, an elderly person was beaten to death on September 11. A 40-year-old man was beaten to death on September 4 in Khulna. A man was killed on September 16 in Jhalakathi.
A man was beaten to death on September 12 in Jhenidah. In Chattogram, a local BNP leader was killed on September 1.
Two youths were killed in Gazipur on August 12. A 20-year-old was beaten to death on August 13 in Barishal.
In Natore, a 36-year-old man was killed on August 12. A man was lynched on September 5 in Tangail. In Khagrachhari, a man was killed on September 18.