Fear grip Matua village in Jashore after arson centring BNP leader’s murder
A violent attack on Bareda Para, a Hindu Matua community village in Daharmsiahati of Abhaynagar in Jashore, left 18 homes burned, looted, and vandalised during a religious festival on Thursday evening.
The assault, which followed the gruesome murder of Tariqul Islam Sardar, a local BNP-affiliated Krishak Dal leader, has left residents in fear, with many fleeing to relatives’ homes at night.
As the community grapples with trauma, no arrests have been made, and police investigations remain ongoing despite filing of no FIR yet, report BBC Bangla.
A festival turned nightmare
On Thursday, the Matua community in Bareda Para was celebrating its annual jajna, a three-day religious festival with a feast for 500–600 people, when violence erupted.
Around 6:10 PM, Tariqul Islam Sardar, 50, president of Nawapara Municipality unit Krishak Dal, was shot and stabbed 34 times over a dispute involving a fish enclosure lease in the waterlogged Bhabadah region.
By 6:45 PM, a mob – allegedly supporters of Sardar – unleashed a four-hour rampage, torching 18 homes, looting cash and jewellery, and vandalising four shops while burning two others. Several people were injured.
“The attackers looted Tk 1 lakh, a gold chain, and destroyed my TV and fridge before setting my house ablaze,” said Manab Biswas, a resident. Bikash Chandra Biswas, a retired headmaster, recounted how his elderly mother pleaded with attackers as they doused three of his homes with gunpowder and set them alight, threatening to burn her too. “We’re too scared to stay home at night,” he said, noting that many villagers now seek refuge with relatives.
A delayed response
Locals allege the attack went unchecked for hours due to delayed intervention. “The fire burned for four hours, but the administration and fire service didn’t arrive until after 11 PM,” Manab Biswas claimed, adding that barricades blocked fire service access. Residents reported that the festival’s music and drums masked initial signs of the murder, delaying awareness until attackers stormed the village, overturning cooking pots and assaulting attendees, including women and the elderly.
Abhaynagar Police Station Officer-in-Charge Abdul Alim confirmed the attack stemmed from Sardar’s murder but denied political motives, attributing it to a business dispute over the fish enclosure.
“No case has been filed for the murder or attack, but we’re investigating,” he told BBC Bangla, noting strengthened police patrols. No arrests have been made three days later, fuelling community fears.
Political or personal?
While police frame the incident as a business conflict, Jashore district unit Krishak Dal President Maqbul Hossain called for a deeper probe into potential political motives, citing 17 prior cases against Sardar from the Awami League era. “We initially thought it was a business matter, but a third party may have acted politically,” he said. However, he downplayed the arson’s scale, claiming it was limited to the murder site, not the festival area—a claim contradicted by victims’ accounts of widespread destruction.
BNP leaders in Khulna claimed they intervened to calm the situation, but locals and Hindu leaders argue the response was inadequate.
Lingering trauma
The attack has left Bareda Para’s Matua community in distress, with many too traumatized to return home, especially after dark due to unrestored electricity. Dipankar Das Ratan, president of Jashore’s Puja Udjapan Parishad, visited with the Deputy Commissioner and Superintendent of Police on Sunday to reassure residents but noted ongoing panic. “The situation is stabilising, but the lack of electricity and arrests keeps fear alive,” he said.
The Upazila Nirbahi Officer provided relief – 16 tin sheets, 30 kg of rice, Tk 6,000, and two blankets per affected household—but victims like Bikash Biswas say it’s insufficient.