Hindu family trapped in house by Muslim attackers; threatened to burn alive in Khulna, Bangladesh

Case ID : 30a9b70 | Location : Khulna Division, Bangladesh | Date of Incident : Tue, 28 July, 2026

Case ID : 30a9b70

Khulna Division, Bangladesh

28 July, 2026

Hindu family trapped in house by Muslim attackers; threatened to burn alive in Khulna, Bangladesh

Case Summary

A Hindu woman and her two young children were threatened and attacked at their home in Khulna, Bangladesh. In their effort to seize the Hindu family's property, some Muslim assailants attempted to force entry, vandalised the property, padlocked the house's collapsible gate from the outside, and threatened to burn them alive by pouring petrol on the house. According to the victims, the attackers repeatedly kicked the entrance door, broke window glass, climbed onto the roof, damaged the staircase, and declared that they would seize the property if the family refused to open the door. Trapped inside without any adult male family members present, the mother and her children endured hours of fear while pleading for their lives. According to local media reports, including video footage broadcast by Times Today and Khulna-r Katha, the incident occurred when several unidentified men surrounded the family's residence and attempted to gain entry. After damaging windows and kicking the main entrance, the attackers placed a heavy lock on the exterior metal gate, preventing the occupants from leaving the house. Speaking from behind the metal bars of a window in the broadcast footage, the mother described the ordeal. She stated that the attackers targeted her family because they were Hindus, broke the windows, and threatened to set the house on fire if the door was not opened. She said they told her they would pour petrol into the house and burn the family alive, while also claiming ownership of the property and demanding that she vacate it. She further stated that the men climbed onto the roof, damaged the staircase, and continued trying to force their way inside. The woman recounted that she begged the attackers to stop, telling them she was alone inside with her two young children and pleading with them not to break the door. Despite her appeals, the men continued threatening to occupy the house and shouted that they would burn the family if they did not comply. The woman victim's sister, who was at the City Medical Hospital caring for her injured mother, stated that she returned home during the night in heavy rain to collect food. Upon arrival, she found two or three men surrounding the residence and harassing her sister inside. According to her account, the attackers repeatedly demanded that the door be opened so they could take possession of the property. No male members of the family were present at the residence during the incident. The victims expressed fear for their safety and appealed to the authorities to provide protection, investigate the attack, identify those responsible, and ensure justice. This incident is part of an ongoing pattern of violence against Hindus in Bangladesh, where the community has repeatedly faced persecution and disruptions to their religious festivals and gatherings. Such attacks on Hindu minorities have become increasingly frequent and intensified since August 2024. This escalation of violence against Hindus in Bangladesh has unfolded in three distinct phases: first, following the ouster of Sheikh Hasina’s government in August 2024; second, after the death of Sharif Osman Bin Hadi in December 2025; and third, in the immediate aftermath of the 13th National Parliamentary Election 2026. Following the ouster of Sheikh Hasina, multiple reports documented attacks on Hindu homes, temples, and religious institutions, alongside intimidation campaigns, arson, and mob assaults targeting minority neighbourhoods. The Hinduphobia tracker has recorded 336 such incidents against the Hindu minority, underscoring the scale and persistence of anti-Hindu violence during this period. A further escalation occurred following the death of Sharif Osman Bin Hadi, a Muslim political activist and student leader known for his anti-Hindu and anti-India rhetoric. Hadi had been involved in political unrest after the fall of the Hasina government and was killed in Dhaka on 18 December 2025 during clashes. In the aftermath of his death, Hindu communities were blamed and subsequently targeted in retaliatory violence. Hindu homes were selectively set ablaze in multiple localities, forcing families to flee and leaving many displaced. The attacks appeared patterned rather than sporadic, with Muslim mobs focusing on Hindu neighbourhoods, properties, and religious symbols. Among the victims was Dipu Chandra Das, who was lynched to death and his body was set ablaze by a Muslim mob over false blasphemy allegations. The Hinduphobia tracker documented 51 incidents of anti-Hindu violence in the period following Hadi’s death alone. Such incidents underscore the vulnerability of the Hindu minority amid rising communal hostility and the weaponisation of religious accusations. Reports further indicated that posters and written materials calling for the extermination of Hindus were displayed in public spaces, signalling an alarming normalisation of genocidal rhetoric. When combined with acts of arson, vandalism, assault, and targeted intimidation, these developments suggest a coordinated environment of hostility aimed at terrorising the Hindu community and reinforcing majoritarian dominance. The third phase of violence was unleashed after the 13th National Parliamentary Election 2026. Within days of the announcement of results, Hindu families in districts such as Noakhali, Rangpur, Nilphamari, Sylhet, Thakurgaon, and Dinajpur reported coordinated attacks involving arson, looting, assault, and vandalism of temples and homes. In several instances, Hindu homes were selectively targeted, looted, and families were threatened with displacement.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

The primary category selected in this case is: Attack not resulting in death, with the subcategory selected as: Attacked for Hindu identity. In several cases, Hindus are attacked merely for their Hindu identity without any perceived provocation. A classic example of this category of religiously motivated hate crime is a murder in 2016. 7 ISIS terrorists were convicted for shooting a school principal in Kanpur because they got ‘triggered’ seeing the Kalava on his wrist and the tilak that he had put. In this, the Hindu victim had offered no provocation except for his Hindu religious identity. The motivation for the murder was purely religious, driven by religious supremacy. Such cases where Hindus are targeted merely for their religious identity would be documented as hate crimes under this category. In this case, the Hindu woman's statement that the Muslim attackers referenced the family's Hindu identity while threatening them, combined with the attempt to force them out of their home, shows that they were targeted because they belong to a Hindu religious minority. The actions described in the circulated video, surrounding the home, attempting to break in, damaging windows and doors, locking the family inside from the outside, and threatening to burn the occupants alive with petrol are acts intended to terrorise them and force them to capitulate under pressure. The fact that a mother and two young children were trapped inside the house while the attackers threatened to set it on fire represents an extreme form of psychological and physical violence. Such threats can create lasting fear not only for the immediate victims but also for other Hindu families. The attackers' reported claim that "this house is ours" and that they would occupy the property also carries particular significance. In several documented cases, land and properties owned by Hindus in Muslim-majority localities became the subject of coercive acquisition, encroachment or other forms of unlawful occupation, raising concerns about the vulnerability of the Hindu minority in such areas. The invocation of their Hindu religious identity alongside an attempt to seize their home is evidence that the attack was not solely about property. This incident did not occur in isolation but against the backdrop of the continuing persecution of Hindus in Bangladesh. Since the political upheaval following the ouster of Sheikh Hasina's government in August 2024, the Hindu minority has faced recurring incidents of violence, intimidation, attacks on temples, destruction of homes and businesses, sexual violence, land grabbing, and targeted assaults. The Hinduphobia Tracker has documented more than 600 such incidents during this period alone, highlighting that these are not isolated occurrences but part of a sustained pattern of hostility directed at the Hindu community. The cumulative effect of these attacks has created an atmosphere of fear and insecurity, where even the routine exercise of Hindu religious, cultural, and social practices increasingly exposes the community to intimidation and violence. Viewed against this broader backdrop, the present incident reflects the continuing vulnerability of Hindus in Bangladesh and the persistent pattern of anti-Hindu persecution in the country. Disclaimer: The exact date on which the incident involving the Hindu family in Khulna occurred was not specified in the available sources. However, video footage documenting the incident was published by the Bangladesh-based media channel Khulna Face on 29th July 2026. In the absence of a separately confirmed date of occurrence, 29th July 2026 has been used as the incident date by aligning the incident with the earliest available dated documentation. This date has been recorded for documentation purposes only.