Bangladesh, in recent times, has been witnessing a spate of attacks on minorities, liberals and secular activists. From bloggers to journalists to common people, Islamic fundamentalists have hacked to death many in the country. This thread of violence and intolerance goes back to the 1993 fatwa against author Taslima Nasreen following the release of her book Lajja .
However, the government is >attributing the incidents to activists from the opposition parties — the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and the Jamaat-e-Islami.
Here is a timeline of the recent such attacks.
How the events unfolded
10-06-2016: Hindu ashram worker hacked to death
Unknown assailants hacked to death 60-year-old Nityaranjan Pandey, a Hindu ashram inmate called 'Thakur Anukul Chandra Satsanga Paramtirtha Ashram’ in northern Pabna district in Bangladesh.The local police said that Mr. Pandey was murdered around 6.15 a.m. on Friday, when he was out for his morning walk. > Read more.
07-06-2016: Hindu priest killed
Unidentified assailants on Tuesday shot and hacked to death a Hindu priest, Ananta Gopal Ganguly, in Jhenaidah in southwestern part of the country. He was attacked at around 9:30 a.m. by three men who slit his throat with sharp-edged weapons. > Read more.
05-06-2016: A Christian grocer was hacked to death
A Christian grocer was hacked to death in the north Bangladeshi district of Natore by unidentified miscreants. The incident took place hours after the wife of a police officer was murdered. IS claims responsibility. >Read more
14-05-2016: Elderly Buddhist monk hacked to death in
An elderly Buddhist monk was found hacked to death. His body was found in a pool of blood inside the Buddhist temple. The murder adds to a grim toll in past weeks, with an atheist student, two gay rights activists, a liberal professor, and a Sufi Muslim leader hacked to death. >Read more
01-05-2016: Hindu tailor hacked to death
A Hindu tailor was hacked to death near his workplace in Gopalpur upazila of Tangail district near Dhaka. Police and eyewitness said three young men, who came on a motorcycle, hacked Nikhil Chandra Joarder (50) and left him dead on the spot. >Read more
03-10-2015: Japan citizen shot dead
A Japanese citizen, Kunio Hoshi (65), was the second foreign national killed in the South Asian nation within a week. Earlier an Italian priest, who was on a project in Bangladesh, Cesare Tavella, was shot dead by three gunmen. >Read more
Timeline of recent attacks on secular bloggers.
