Dhaka, 17 Jan

A Hindu man was crushed to death in Bangladesh after he tried to stop a vehicle from leaving a petrol pump without paying for fuel, police said.

The incident, which took place on Friday in Rajbari district, marks the latest in a spate of violence targeting Hindus in Bangladesh.

The victim, identified as 30-year-old Ripon Saha, was a fuel station worker, The Daily Star newspaper reported on Saturday, quoting police officials.

He was working at Karim Filling Station in Goalanda Mor at the time of the incident, it said.

“We will file a murder case. The worker stood in front of the car after they refused to pay for fuel, and they ran him over before fleeing.” Rajbari Sadar Police chief Khondakar Ziaur Rahman was quoted as saying by news portal bdnews24.com.

According to police and eyewitnesses, a black SUV arrived at the filling station around 4:30 am on Friday and took fuel worth about Tk 5,000 (approx INR 3,710). When the driver attempted to leave without paying, Saha tried to block the vehicle. The car allegedly ran him over and sped away, killing him on the spot.

Police later seized the vehicle and arrested its owner, Abul Hashem alias Sujan, 55, and his driver Kamal Hossain, 43.

Hashem, a former treasurer of Rajbari district Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and former president of the district Jubo Dal, is a contractor by profession, police said.

According to the 2022 census, the Hindu population in Bangladesh is approximately 13.13 million, which accounts for about 7.95% of the country's total population.

Earlier this month, the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council (BHBCUC) in a statement alleged that as the date of the general elections draws nearer, communal violence is increasing at an alarming rate in the country. Parliamentary polls are scheduled on 12 February.

The forum alleged that the violence is aimed at preventing minority voters from casting votes for candidates of their choice.

The Council said it has recorded 51 incidents of communal violence in December 2025 alone.

A 42-year-old jeweller, identified as Prantosh Sarkar, was shot dead by miscreants at a school field in Narshingdi on 2 December.

A 25-year-old garment factory worker, identified as Dipu Chandra Das, was lynched to death by a mob over alleged blasphemy in Mymensingh city on 18 December. His body was then set on fire.

Another Hindu man, identified as Amrit Mondal, was lynched over alleged extortion in Rajbari town's Pangsha upazila on 24 December.

Khokon Chandra Das, 50, was brutally attacked, hacked and set on fire by miscreants while returning home after closing his shop on the night of 31 December. He died in a hospital three days later on 3 January.

A 40-year-old grocery shop owner, identified as Moni Chakraborty, was murdered by unidentified attackers who struck him with a sharp weapon on the night of 5 January at Charsindhur Bazar in Palash Upazila.

Rana Pratap Bairagi, a 38-year-old ice-making factory owner, who was also the acting editor of a newspaper called 'Dainik BD Khabar' published from Narail, was fatally shot in the head by unidentified assailants on 5 January in Jessore district.

A 25-year-old man, identified as Mithun Sarkar, died on 6 Jan after he jumped into a canal to escape a mob that accused him of theft in Naogaon district.

Liberation War veteran and retired primary school headmaster, Jogesh Chandra Roy (70) and his wife, Shubarna Roy, were killed at the Taraganj area of Rangpur on 7 December. Their blood-stained bodies were found on the kitchen floor of their house.