Mob violence persists amid weak policing

Shahjahan Mintiz was standing in front of his house in Nazrul Nagar area of Char Fasson, Bhola, on Sunday morning when a group of men dragged him away, claiming that he was a thief.

There had been several incidents of theft in the village and the residents were angry. The men broke Mintiz's arms and legs before gouging out both his eyes.

Mintiz, 40, was accused in six cases. He was arrested in November last year and is now out on bail.

But police later said they have no information that Mintiz was involved in any incident of theft that day.

Ershadul Haque Bhuiyan, officer-in-charge of Dakshin Aicha Police Station, said no one had filed any complaint regarding the mob beating. "If we receive a complaint, we will take action," he told The Daily Star.

Mob violence has been occurring in the country for years. But the recent spate of mugging and robbery has apparently caused a surge in such incidences.

Rights activists and criminologists point out that political instability and weak governance have created a vacuum, which the wrongdoers are taking advantage of.

Tawohidul Haque, associate professor at Dhaka University's Institute of Social Welfare and Research, said due to the deterioration of law and order, people are resorting to mob violence.

When people see law enforcement agencies failing to act and criminals taking advantage, they take matters into their own hands, he said.

Environment Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan at an event yesterday said, "The government has clearly stated multiple times that there is no room for mob justice or moral policing in the country. The government has a strong stance against these."

On Sunday, a mob assaulted and seriously injured 19-year-old Shanto before handing him over to police in the capital's Mohammadpur. Witnesses said Shanto was caught after he snatched a phone from someone.

In Domshar area of Shariatpur around 10:00pm on Friday, a mob beat six people to death on suspicion that they were robbers.

Police could not identify the deceased as of yesterday, according to Helal Uddin, OC of Palong Police Station.

The deceased men had two shotguns, he said, adding that two cases, one for attempted robbery and another for illegal arms possession, had been filed.

According to a database of the Human Rights Support Society, 17 incidents of mob beatings took place in February, resulting in 10 deaths.

In January this year, 16 people lost their lives at the hands of mobs, ASK data shows.

According to Ain o Salish Kendra, mob beatings claimed at least 128 lives last year, with 96 occurring between August and December. The number of such deaths was 51 in 2023.

The home ministry in a statement yesterday said the government was resolute in ensuring that all individuals involved in mob violence are brought to justice.

Noted rights activist Nur Khan Liton said, "When there is unrest in a society and the rule of law is weak, people take law into their own hands. Recently, we have seen these incidents rise due to instability, slow police response, and the lack of strict measures."

He added that Home Adviser Jahangir Alam Chowdhury's comment regarding the assault on two women in Lalmatia reflected an attempt to cover up the government failure.

"The only solution to the problem is to establish the rule of law. Without it, there is no way out," he said.

The current interim government is not elected, he said, adding that it took office under certain circumstances. "Many wrongdoers are taking advantage of this."

On March 1, two women were taken into custody after they were physically assaulted by a group of men at a tea stall in the capital's Lalmatia. The argument began after the men asked them not to smoke.

The next day, Adviser Jahangir said that smoking in public was prohibited for both men and women and urged people not to smoke in public spaces.

On February 25, a young man was killed in Gazipur's Tongi and two others were seriously injured in Dhaka's Uttara in mob beatings.

Hafizur Rahman, OC of Uttara Pashchim Police Station, said there was no evidence that the two young men in Uttara were involved in any crime committed that day.

"We sent them to jail. They were shown arrested in a case filed earlier," he said, adding that no cases had been filed regarding the mob violence.

Talebur Rahman, DC (media) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, said a few isolated incidents of mob violence happened in Dhaka. The DMP urges people to hand over suspects to law enforcers, he said.

Meanwhile, Dhaka District Police in a statement last night urged people not to post about robberies and other "sensitive things" on social media without proper verification.

The statement came after someone posted on social media about a robbery in Dakkhin Keraniganj that turned out to be false, reports BSS.