Flames in Shariatpur: Bangladesh Plunges into Crisis After Hindu
Dhaka, Bangladesh – January 3, 2026
Businessman’s Death – Regional Ties Reach Breaking Point. A wave of communal anxiety and political unrest has gripped Bangladesh following the death of Khokon Chandra Das, a 50-year-old Hindu businessman who succumbed to horrific injuries on Saturday morning.
Das, who was ambushed, hacked with sharp weapons, and set on fire on New Year’s Eve, passed away at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery in Dhaka.
His death marks the fifth killing of a member of the Hindu minority in just over a month, sparking massive protests in Shariatpur and Dhaka, and triggering a diplomatic firestorm between Dhaka and New Delhi.
The Brutality of the New Year’s Eve Attack
The details of the assault on Khokon Das have sent shockwaves through the region.
On the night of December 31, 2025, Das was returning home after closing his pharmacy and mobile banking business at Keurbhanga Bazar in the Damudya Upazila.
According to local police reports, a group of assailants intercepted his autorickshaw, dragged him out, and subjected him to a sustained assault.
The attackers did not stop at physical violence; they reportedly poured petrol over Das and set him ablaze. In a desperate bid for survival, the businessman jumped into a roadside pond to extinguish the flames.
Despite being rescued by local residents and undergoing three days of intensive care for burns covering 30% of his body—including his face and respiratory tract—he was unable to survive.
Before his passing, Das reportedly identified two of his attackers, leading to the filing of a formal case against three local youths.
The “Mustafizur Fallout” and the Sporting Wedge
The repercussions of this violence have transcended borders and bled into the world of international sports.
In an unprecedented move, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Saturday ordered the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to immediately release Bangladeshi pacer Mustafizur Rahman.
The BCCI cited “national sentiments” and the “prevailing situation” in Bangladesh as the reason for the directive.
This decision has effectively turned the cricket pitch into a geopolitical battlefield.
KKR, co-owned by Bollywood icon Shah Rukh Khan, had acquired Mustafizur for approximately $1.1 million (INR 9.20 crore).
The forced release of a high-profile athlete due to communal violence in his home country is a rare and severe diplomatic signal, indicating that New Delhi’s patience with the interim administration in Dhaka is thinning.
A Strategic Challenge for the Region
As protests grow in the streets of Dhaka, the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council has warned that radical groups are “visibly trying to intimidate” minority faiths to influence the upcoming national elections.
An Indian parliamentary committee recently labeled the situation in Bangladesh as India’s “greatest strategic challenge since 1971.”
The interim government in Bangladesh has blamed the violence on “terror activities” and promised swift justice, but the repeated nature of these attacks—seven recorded in December alone—suggests a deeper systemic failure.
With the “Fifth Death” now confirmed, the international community is watching to see if Dhaka can restore order or if the country is spiraling toward a period of prolonged sectarian and political volatility.
Headlines from the Delta:
• Fatal Injuries: Khokon Das dies in Dhaka after being set on fire by a mob in Shariatpur.
• IPL Sanction: BCCI orders KKR to sack Mustafizur Rahman over “national sentiments.”
• Minority Crisis: Five Hindu community members killed in Bangladesh since December.
• Strategic Alarm: India views the rising radicalization as its top regional security threat.
