A prominent Hindu community leader was allegedly abducted from his home and beaten to death in Dinajpur district in north Bangladesh, a media report said on Friday (April 18, 2025)

Body of Bhabesh Chandra Roy, 58, a resident of Basudebpur village of Dinajpur, about 330 kilometres northwest of Dhaka, was recovered on Thursday night, The Daily Star said quoting police and family members.

Roy’s wife Shantana told The Daily Star that he received a phone call around 4:30 pm and claimed the call was made by the perpetrators to confirm his presence at home.

The postmortem of Bhabesh Chandra Roy, a prominent Hindu community leader in Bangladesh, has been completed following his alleged abduction and brutal killing in Dinajpur district’s Biral upazila. Roy, 58, was the vice-president of the Biral unit of the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad and a respected figure among local Hindus.

According to his family and police reports, the incident began on Thursday afternoon when Roy received a suspicious phone call around 4:30 pm, which his wife, Shantana Roy, believes was made by the perpetrators to confirm his presence at home.

About thirty minutes later, four men arrived on two motorcycles, forcibly abducted him from his residence in Basudebpur village, and took him to Narabari village, where he was reportedly beaten severely.

Eyewitnesses and family members recounted that later the same evening, Roy’s unconscious body was returned to his home in a van by the attackers.

With assistance from local residents, his family rushed him to the Biral Upazila Health Complex and subsequently to Dinajpur Medical College Hospital, where he was declared dead upon arrival. His body was then sent to the hospital morgue for postmortem examination.

As of now, police have confirmed that the postmortem has been completed, but the contents of the report have not yet been disclosed. Officer-in-charge Abdus Sabur of Biral Police Station stated that preparations are underway to file a case, and efforts are ongoing to identify and apprehend those responsible for the crime.

The family has not yet filed a formal case, citing their preoccupation with funeral rites, but Roy’s wife has indicated she could identify at least two of the assailants.

ANI