28-year-old Hindu man Ratan Shuvo Kar’s remains were recovered Wednesday morning from a tea garden in northeastern Bangladesh just before the country was set to begin voting in its first parliamentary elections since the uprising in 2024.
The Discovery
Ratan, a laborer at the Champara Tea Garden in Kamalganj upazila (about 190 km from Dhaka), has been reported missing since Tuesday evening. His family, led by his elder brother Laxman Kar, had been searching for him all night until local people reported their concern around 10:00 a.m. Wednesday.
When police arrived on site, Ratan was found in the tea garden with his hands and feet bound. Witnesses to the death found that the body bore signs of injury and blood, suggesting that there may have been an argument or that Ratan had been killed.
Investigation and Allegations
Local residents and minority rights groups are worried that the killing might have been fomented by intimidation leading up to elections, but authorities have been cautious. "We took the body and sent it to Moulvibazar Sadar Hospital for autopsy. Suspicious circumstances have emerged, but there is currently no evidence indicating directly that this is connected with the elections," said Abdul Awal, Officer-in-Charge (OC) Kamalganj Police Station. He claimed that an investigation is underway. Maintaining anonymity, some colleagues at the garden argued during an interview that Ratan was most likely killed somewhere else and the body had been dumped in the garden under cover of darkness.
Context: The day the election was held was fraught
The killing came at a time of intense tension in Bangladesh. Millions start casting their ballots Thursday, February 12, in an election in which the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), led by Tarique Rahman, will face off against the party they know best — the party they have long looked to as a front-runner in the electoral process.
The political climate is hot
- Violence reports: at least 16 political activists killed since election schedule announced in December.
- Minority fears: Ratan Shuvo Kar’s murder followed the murder of a Hindu businessman last month and stoked fears that targeting vulnerable communities to boost turnout is growing.
- Security Boost: Thousands of security forces have been sent to Dhaka and the countryside to ward off fighting between rival BNP supporters and Jamaat-e-Islami. At a national level: An autopsy will clarify the cause of death, but local residents are on high alert as the country works on its political next move.
