Two men, Ruplal Das (40) from Ghanirampur village, Kursha Union, and his relative Pradip Lal (35) from Baluabhata village, Mithapukur Upazila, were beaten to death by locals on suspicion of theft in Botatola area of Sayar Union, Taraganj Upazila, Rangpur.
A widely circulated video shows Ruplal and Pradip being stopped along with their van by several locals who searched a plastic bag they carried.
Despite Ruplal’s repeated pleas that he was neither a thief nor a robber and that he worked as a cobbler in Taraganj market, the crowd remained hostile.
When Ruplal attempted to urinate, the crowd suspected he was trying to escape and did not allow him to move. Soon he collapsed on the ground.
Pradip, sitting on the van, was accused by the crowd of pretending to be unconscious. A young man checked a plastic bottle from their bag near Pradip’s nose, after which Pradip begged for mercy before collapsing. Even after being helped up, the crowd resumed the assault.
Both men were taken to Taraganj Upazila Health Complex, where Ruplal was declared dead. Pradip was transferred to Rangpur Medical College Hospital, where he died at 4 a.m. the following day.
Police recovered the bodies and sent them for autopsy. Following Ruplal’s body’s arrival at his home, locals protested by blocking the highway. Security forces were deployed in the area the next morning.
The incident followed a recent series of thefts and a child’s murder in the area, which heightened tensions. Ruplal’s wife, Bharati Rani, filed a murder case at Taraganj police station against 700 unknown individuals.
Using video evidence and technological analysis, police arrested four suspects: Ebadat Hossain (27), Aktarul Islam (45), Rafiqul Islam (33), and Mizanur Rahman (22).
Officer-in-Charge M.A. Faruk of Taraganj police said investigations and further arrests are ongoing, and no one involved will be spared.
