Bishwajit Das, a 24-year-old tailor from Old Dhaka, was brutally killed on December 9, 2012, after being mistaken for an opposition activist during a nationwide blockade. On that morning, Bishwajit was simply walking past Bahadur Shah Park to open his small tailoring shop when a group of activists chased him, beat him with iron rods and machetes, and stabbed him repeatedly. Despite managing to run into a nearby building, he was dragged out and attacked again in broad daylight.
The killing was captured on video and widely circulated, shocking the country and raising urgent questions about the impunity surrounding student-wing violence. Bishwajit had no political affiliation, yet he became a target in a moment of absolute lawlessness when political confrontation spilled into everyday civilian life. His death exposed how ordinary people are often the first to pay the price for heightened political conflict.
Following a long legal process, a Dhaka court sentenced several members of the Bangladesh Chhatra League’s Jagannath University unit for their involvement in the murder. Some received death sentences, others life imprisonment; however, debates around accountability, appeals, and uneven enforcement have continued over the years. The case remains a symbol of how justice in politically charged killings often moves slowly and inconsistently.
More than a decade later, Bishwajit’s name still stands as a stark reminder of what unchecked political violence can destroy. His family repeatedly described him as a quiet young man working hard to support his household. His killing is remembered not just as a crime committed on the street, but as a turning point that exposed systemic failures—failures that allowed armed groups to operate freely and left civilians vulnerable in moments of political turmoil.
Bangladesh Feminist Archives 