Beyond protest: Mob violence and the struggle for institutional response in Bangladesh

Bangladesh has recorded at least 154 mob-beating deaths between January and August 2026, according to the rights group Ain o Salish Kendra, part of a documented rise since the 2024 uprising that ousted the previous government.

Cases detailed in the reporting include a 10-year-old's murder in Pabna, where a crowd vandalized a suspect's home while police stood by and later described the mob as too large to stop, and the hacking death of a Sufi shrine's spiritual leader in Kushtia after an offensive video circulated on Facebook. Transparency International Bangladesh separately tallied 69 to 80 mob incidents and up to 42 deaths in just the new government's first 100 days.

Journalists have not been spared: broadcaster Rifat Alam Risan described being falsely accused mid-crowd and beaten until rescued by colleagues. Officials and rights monitors point to weak law enforcement, social media rumor, and near-total impunity as the drivers, with arrests, when they come, often lagging days behind the violence.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.