From vandalised amusement parks to violent crackdowns on public discourse, Bangladesh is witnessing a disturbing resurgence of mob violence—unchecked, emboldened, and increasingly state-enabled.
Recent incidents, including the assault on a Mancha 71 discussion at Dhaka Reporters Unity (DRU), echo the tactics of past authoritarian regimes. Critics argue that inaction, selective law enforcement, and political convenience have allowed mob terror to fester, shifting the nation from democratic dissent to orchestrated intimidation. As legal safeguards erode and fascist patterns re-emerge under a new guise, voices from across civil society warn: impunity is now the mob’s most powerful weapon.
‘Use of same old methods in the DRU incident stunned everyone’
Kamal Ahmed
Senior Journalist and Chief of the Media Reform Commission
The minimum expectation from the interim government was that they would neither do anything themselves nor allow anything to happen that would cause the fascist actions of the previous autocratic regime to fade from public discourse. It’s hard to keep an accurate count of how many events the Awami League and its associates disrupted. At that time, university vice-chancellors, senior intellectuals, political leaders, freedom fighters…and journalists were subjected to humiliation and abuse. The extreme misuse of the Anti-Terrorism Act and Digital Security Act is something the victims will never forget.
With the fall of the autocratic regime, it was assumed that such practices had come to an end. In the new order, the law would be applied properly—each individual would be punished according to the crime they had committed. But witnessing the same old methods at play in the Dhaka Reporters Unity (DRU) incident leaves one stunned in disbelief.
By bringing up Siddique’s past crimes or alleged fascist sympathies of others, those defending the disruption of their event and their jailing under the Anti-Terrorism Act are unnecessarily placing them in the victim’s seat.
Does their meeting fall under the activities that are banned for the Awami League? If so, then perhaps calling in the police to halt the event would have been logical. Otherwise, as free citizens, everyone has the right to express their opinions for or against the government. Not only was that freedom taken away, setting a bad precedent, but the discussion of 15 years of misdeeds was also pushed to the background.
Treating participation in public discussions or delivering speeches as acts of terrorism is, in fact, a repetition of the past. We know how, in the past, arrests from Jamaat-Shibir’s private meetings led to charges under anti-terrorism laws in the same manner. So, does this mean the old order still remains in place?
Kamal Ahmed made these remarks in a Facebook post on 29 August
‘Government is patronising the mob’
Anu Muhammad
Member of Ganatantrik Odhikar Committee and Noted Economist
The way a mob incident unfolded at a discussion meeting at the Dhaka Reporters Unity is extremely alarming. It is clearly evident that the government is patronising the mob. Legal action should have been taken against those who committed mob violence. But instead, those who went there to participate in the discussion—freedom fighters, university teachers, and journalists—were arrested and cases were filed against them.
The youth did not sacrifice their lives in the mass uprising (’24) to replace one form of fascism with another. The inequalities that were protested against and the rights that were fought for are gradually being pushed aside.
The expectation of the mass uprising (of ’24) was to establish the right to counter an argument with another argument, to respond to writing with writing, and to express opposing views in protest of existing ones. But now, a year later, it appears that this expectation has not been fulfilled. Just like in the previous fascist era, dissent is still being suppressed through the use of force.
Anu Muhammad made these remarks during a condolence meeting held at the Central Shaheed Minar
‘Lack of decisive steps leading to mob terrorism’
Nur Khan Liton
Lawyer and Human Rights Activist
There is no such thing as mob justice; it is mob terrorism. To rid the nation of this menace, the government must act decisively, and law enforcement agencies must be empowered to carry out their responsibilities effectively. Mob terror has reached such a level that people are now spending their days in constant fear.
A climate of anxiety has been created across society, with mobs attacking professionals, politicians, businessmen, and ordinary citizens alike. Groups are uniting to attack individuals to serve their ill motives—extorting money, looting, and setting properties ablaze.
To free the nation from this terror, the interim government must take visible and decisive steps. At present, the government is failing to control mob violence precisely because it has not taken such measures.
TBS’ Rezaul Karim spoke to Nur Khan Liton over the phone
‘Government has been selective in containing violence’
Altaf Parvez
Researcher, South & Southeast Asian History and Politics
Since August last year, incidents of violence have been happening, including mob justice, attacks on women and shrines. There is no denying that it is the responsibility of the government to prevent these incidents of violence. I think the government has been selective when it comes to containing violence, as they seem to have allowed some forms of violence while they also acted in some other cases.
In many cases, intellectuals patronised by the government have defended vandalism by terming the ‘mob’ as a ‘pressure group’. As a result, violence somewhere in the country has instigated others to commit similar kinds of crimes, creating a ripple effect in the society.
After a sudden political changeover, untoward incidents happen in a country. It is solely the responsibility of the government to enforce law and order and control the mob; no political party can do it. For political violence, we can blame the political parties, but at the end of the day, the advisers who are part of the government will have to act and enforce law and order.
TBS’ Morshedul Alam Mohabat spoke to Altaf Parvez over the phone
