133 people killed in 261 incidents of mob violence and mob beatings in the country over the last six months

Mob violence and extrajudicial lynchings have escalated dramatically in Bangladesh, with fatalities nearly doubling over the first six months of the year compared to the same period in 2025. According to a comprehensive semi-annual human rights report released on Wednesday, 15 July, by the Human Rights Support Society (HRSS), at least 133 people were killed and 256 others sustained injuries across 261 separate incidents of mob justice between January and June.

The data represents a stark deterioration in the country’s law and order situation. During the corresponding period in 2025, the rights watchdog documented 141 incidents of vigilante violence, which resulted in 67 deaths and 119 injuries. The HRSS noted that these summary executions and assaults were triggered by various pretexts, including allegations of theft, robbery, mugging, personal altercations, local turf wars, and accusations of religious blasphemy. The findings were compiled using data from 16 mainstream national newspapers, field-level information gathered by the organisation, and independent fact-finding reports.

The report also raised serious alarms regarding the vulnerability of religious minorities. In the first half of this year, 50 targeted attacks on minority communities left 56 people injured. The violence included vandalism targeting 19 temples, 15 deities, and 43 households, alongside four recorded instances of land grabbing. This marks a sharp rise from the first six months of 2025, when 10 attacks left four individuals injured, with one temple, 11 deities, and 18 households vandalised.

Labour rights violations have similarly intensified. The HRSS documented 331 incidents of industrial or workplace abuse, resulting in 74 worker deaths and 1,003 injuries. By comparison, 2025 saw 112 incidents, 59 fatalities, and 720 injuries. Furthermore, 216 labourers lost their lives this year due to workplace accidents, hazardous environments, and a lack of protective gear, up from 43 industrial deaths in the previous year’s first half. The report added that 26 workers were detained during protests demanding unpaid wages, whilst domestic workers faced severe abuse, with two killed, four injured, and two mysterious deaths recorded.

Ejajul Islam, the Executive Director of the HRSS, expressed deep concern over these findings, calling for greater institutional accountability and law enforcement reforms to prevent citizens from taking the law into their own hands. He urged the government, civil society, media professionals, and human rights bodies to play a more proactive role in defending the rule of law.