Hindu Tea worker found bound and bloodied in Bangladesh garden amid general polls; probe underway

The deceased was identified as 28-year-old Ratan Shuvo Kar.

His body was discovered at a time when Bangladesh voted the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to power in the country’s first general elections since the fall of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina-led government in 2024, following widespread protests against her administration.

According to reports, Kar worked at Champara Tea Garden under Islampur Union in Kamalganj. Local residents spotted the body and alerted authorities.

Media reports stated that the body bore visible injury marks and was found in a bloodied condition. A tea garden worker, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Daily Star that locals suspect Kar may have been killed elsewhere and his body later dumped at the site.

Ratan’s elder brother, Laxman Kar, told The Daily Star: “This morning, we were informed that his body was lying in the garden. We went there and identified him. We do not know why he was killed.”

The body was sent to Moulvibazar Sadar Hospital for an autopsy, reports said.

The incident comes amid reports of a rise in attacks on Hindus and other minority communities in recent months following the death of radical youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi in December.

A coalition of human rights groups, faith-based organisations, and civil society leaders has issued an emergency appeal expressing concern over alleged atrocities against Hindus in Bangladesh. The appeal was led by the Hindus Advancing Human Rights Initiative (HAHRI).

In a letter calling for urgent international intervention, the coalition stated: “We draw your urgent attention to the grave and continuing human rights violations being inflicted upon members of the indigenous Hindu people and minority in Bangladesh and seek your immediate intervention to protect them. This protection is sought under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) 2007, which establishes minimum global standards for dignity, survival, and well-being.”

Authorities have not yet released further details regarding the investigation.