Bangladesh sees 300 deaths in post-Hasina political violence, says rights watchdog

Nearly 300 people have been killed in political violence in Bangladesh in the year since student-led protests forced former prime minister Sheikh Hasina from power, according to a new report by the country’s leading human rights group, Odhikar.

The Dhaka-based organization said at least 281 people were killed in clashes linked to political parties between August 2024 — when Hasina fled to India after her 15-year rule collapsed — and September 2025.
In addition, the report recorded 40 suspected extrajudicial killings and 153 lynchings during the same period.

Odhikar director ASM Nasiruddin Elan said that although human rights violations had reduced compared to the Hasina era, law enforcement agencies still lacked accountability.

“We no longer see the frequent enforced disappearances or systematic extrajudicial killings of the Hasina years, but custodial deaths, bribery, and harassment continue,” Elan said.

Elan added that many of those targeted were accused — often without evidence — of affiliation with the now-banned Awami League, Hasina’s party.

The report also noted rampant extortion by various political groups, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, and Jamaat-e-Islami. BNP is currently seen as the frontrunner in the February 2026 elections.

Odhikar further said that mob violence had risen, blaming ineffective policing.
According to the report, police forces “lost morale” after Hasina’s exit, having long been used as a political tool and granted impunity.

So far, neither the interim government nor any political party has responded to Odhikar’s findings.