Writer hacked to death in Dhaka

Victim was founder of popular blog against Islamist radicals

February 27, 2015 02:27 pm | Updated November 17, 2021 02:07 am IST - DHAKA

A file photo of slain blogger Avijit Roy and his wife Rafida Ahmed Banna. Suspected radical Islamists hacked to death the U.S.-based and seriously injured Ms. Banna in Dhaka on Thursday. Photo: Special Arrangement

A file photo of slain blogger Avijit Roy and his wife Rafida Ahmed Banna. Suspected radical Islamists hacked to death the U.S.-based and seriously injured Ms. Banna in Dhaka on Thursday. Photo: Special Arrangement

Suspected radical Islamists hacked to death a popular writer and blogger Avijit Roy and seriously injured his wife Rafida Ahmed Banna, in Dhaka on Thursday.

Roy, a U.S. citizen, is the founder of the popular blog Mukto-Mona (free mind). He had been threatened many times for his sustained campaign against Islamist radicals, said family members and fellow bloggers. He is also well known for his books Biswaser Virus (Virus of Faith) and Sunyo theke Mahabiswa (From Vacuum to the Universe) .

Last year, Rakamari.com , an online bookstore, was forced to remove Roy’s books from its list following threats by Shafiur Rahman Farabi, a fundamentalist blogger. Mr. Farabi was arrested for posting provocative comments on his Facebook page supporting the >killing of blogger Ahmed Rajib Haidar in Mirpur on February 16, 2013. He was later released on bail.

The couple had come to Dhaka recently to attend the Bangla Academy Book Fair, where two of his recent titles had been launched. They were attacked near the Dhaka University campus on Thursday night when they were returning home from the book fair.

The attackers dragged the couple on to the footpath and hacked them with sharp knifes. Avijit had suffered a deep gash on his head and Ms. Banna, also a writer and blogger, has lost a finger and suffered cut wounds.

The attack on Roy resembles the ones on noted writer Humayun Azad and bloggers Haidar and Asif Mohiuddin. Azad was also returning home from the same book fair when he was hacked with machetes by radical militants a few years ago. Azad later >died in Germany while undergoing treatment.

After the Shahbagh agitation, radicals had attacked several other secular bloggers who were demanding capital punishment to those accused of committing war crimes during the 1971 war.

Police said they recovered two bloody machetes and a bag from the spot, and were working to identify the killers.

Top News Today

Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.