In a chilling escalation of post-poll friction, a prominent BNP figure was gunned down in Dhaka’s Kalabagan area on Sunday evening. The victim, 55-year-old Shafiqur Rahman, who serves as joint general secretary for BNP’s Ward-16 in Kalabagan, was struck in the left arm by gunfire from unknown attackers outside a bustling shoe market.
Local trader Shahparan, who helped ferry Rahman to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, described the chaos: ‘A single shot came out of nowhere, piercing his left arm.’ Inspector Mohammad Faruk, overseeing the hospital’s police outpost, verified the details, stating the injured entrepreneur was receiving urgent care while Kalabagan police were looped in.
The assault occurred shortly after BNP’s triumphant sweep in the recent 13th parliamentary elections under Tarique Rahman’s stewardship, as the party gears up to govern. Such violence threatens to undermine the new mandate.
Echoing broader instability, media reports highlight a violent spree post-voting. Five districts saw nine injuries and an arson attack last week alone. Earlier, on February 14 in Natore’s Lalpur, intra-party BNP brawls left six hurt, with police nabbing two suspects and seizing a gun.
According to the Human Rights Support Society’s latest bulletin, election-related turmoil from October 2025 through mid-February logged over 700 cases, killing 10 and wounding 2,503. Gunshots felled 34 victims, while arson and looting ravaged over 500 sites including residences, shops, and polling booths.
With Tarique Rahman now at the helm after Yunus’s 18-month interim stint, analysts caution against deepening instability fueled by political rivalries and extremist elements. This latest shooting serves as a stark reminder of Bangladesh’s precarious path forward, demanding robust security measures to prevent further bloodshed.