Lablu Mia, a 50-year-old local leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), was known as a devoted activist in Badarganj upazila of Rangpur district. But on April 5, his loyalty to the party meant nothing when rival BNP factions turned on each other in a vicious clash over control of a business near the upazila central Shaheed Minar. Stabbed repeatedly in the clashes, Mia became the latest casualty in a growing wave of internal clash tearing through the BNP.

The clash, which left at least 15 injured — nine critically — spiralled so out of control that police and army personnel had to be deployed to restore order. The BNP swiftly suspended eight of its leaders, including a former MP, in connection with the incident, but the damage was already done.

Mia’s death is not an isolated incident. Since the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s government on August 5, 2024, the BNP, arguably the most dominant political force in the country, has been torn by internal divisions. With the Awami League’s influence diminished, BNP factions are now frequently locked in clashes for influence.

Just two days after Mia’s killing, another deadly clash erupted in Raipur Upazila of Lakshmipur district, between rival BNP factions. Two activists were killed, and 15 others were hospitalised with stab wounds.

According to the Human Rights Support Society (HRSS), a rights organisation in Bangladesh, at least 23 people were killed and 733 more injured in over 97 incidents of political violence across the country in March. Of the deaths, 17 occurred in 64 clashes between rival factions of the BNP. These incidents left 502 others injured.

The rights body said that most of the violence was driven by efforts to establish dominance, political vendetta, extortion, and the occupation of various facilities. Although the number of political violence incidents slightly decreased last month, from 104 in February — the number of deaths more than doubled from nine. Of them, five died as result of infighting between BNP factions.

Political violence

January also witnessed alarming levels of political violence, with at least 15 people killed and 987 injured in 124 incidents. The bloodshed predominantly stemmed from internal party conflicts, particularly within BNP, which accounted for 68 violent incidents resulting in 677 injuries and five deaths. However, inter-party clashes between BNP and Awami League activists turned deadly in 22 instances, leaving 106 wounded and four dead, while three confrontations between BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami supporters saw 60 casualties and one fatality.

According to data from Ain o Salish Kendra, another rights organisation, at least 36 people have been killed in political violence over the past three months, including 24 who were killed in infighting between the BNP and its affiliated organisations. Besides, at least 1,415 people were injured in clashes between BNP members and their affiliated wings during the period, while 189 were injured in clashes between the BNP and the Awami League, and 262 in clashes involving the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami.

In 2024, following the fall of the Hasina-led government, violence within BNP circles intensified, leading to at least 1,697 injuries and 31 deaths. While the BNP has long positioned the Awami League as its primary rival, after Ms. Hasina’s fall and the Awami League’s political decline, internal instability appears to be the BNP’s most pressing challenge.

Although the BNP’s top leadership has consistently warned its leaders and activists of stern action if found involved in wrongdoings, including extortion, such warnings have largely gone in vain. Suspension orders are frequently issued when allegations surface against party members; however, these measures have failed to prevent the recurrence of such incidents.

Asked how the BNP sees the infighting, party organising secretary Shama Obaid told The Hindu that internal competition is common in big political parties. However, BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman has instructed party leaders and activists to always stand by the people.

When asked about the deaths reportedly caused by infighting within the BNP over the past three months, Ms. Obaid said, “Each incident needs to be examined individually to determine whether it was truly an internal conflict or part of a conspiracy against the BNP. In many cases, members of the Awami League and their fascist collaborators infiltrate the BNP to create unrest and sabotage the party from within. These isolated incidents are often the result of such conspiracies.”

“While competition exists in large political parties, it doesn’t usually lead to these many deaths. These fatalities are happening because outsiders are orchestrating plots and blaming the BNP for the consequences,” she added.

Amid such incidents, politicians from different parties have called on BNP Acting Chairman Rahman to take decisive action against leaders involved in extortion and violence.

Ariful Islam Adib, senior joint convener of the Nationalist Citizens’ Party (NCP), a newly formed political party of students who led the anti-Hasina protest, said: “I urge Tarique Rahman to take immediate action not only within the party but also through legal means against those involved in extortion and criminal activities. Merely expelling them from the party is not enough. If these individuals are not dealt with firmly, they won’t just target opposition activists—they will eventually destroy the BNP from within.”

The law-and-order situation in the country is yet to be fully restored, as incidents of extortion and deadly violence occur unabated.

However, Home Affairs Advisor Jahangir Alam Chowdhury warned that strict action will be taken against police officials who fail to maintain law and order. “Clear and firm instructions have already been issued to law enforcement agencies to further strengthen control on the ground. If any police officers fail to bring the situation under control, they will face severe consequences,” he said.

According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), a total of 390 individuals involved in various criminal activities — including robbery, extortion, mugging, and fugitives with multiple arrest warrants — were arrested across the country between April 10 and April 17 during joint operations conducted by the Bangladesh Army and other law enforcement agencies.

Changed situation

Advocate Saidur Rahman, chief executive of the Manabadhikar Shongskriti Foundation (MSF), told The Hindu that although the BNP has been out of power for nearly two decades, in the changed and favourable situation its leaders and activists are now involved in extortion.

“When they were completely out of power, we didn’t see such infighting among them. But now, driven by financial motives, they are clashing internally. When one faction tries to take control of an area, another group wants to dominate the same territory, leading to violent confrontations,” he said.

“We rarely see any concrete action from the government (against such incidents). Authorities seem to treat these internal fights as outside their jurisdiction. Even the police, despite being aware of the potential for violence, often refrain themselves from intervening out of fear for their own safety. There’s also a clear lack of coordination among different ministries; they don’t know what the others are doing. The government has largely taken a hands-off approach, as if to say, ‘Let the BNP fight among themselves; we don’t need to get involved’,” added Mr. Rahman.

(Rabiul Alam is a Dhaka-based journalist)

The United States has dropped enough hints that it does not want to drag on with the Russia-Ukraine war and now President Donald Trump delivered the massive blow on Wednesday as he slammed Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s statement on Crimea.
“The situation for Ukraine is dire — He can have Peace or, he can fight for another three years before losing the whole Country. I have nothing to do with Russia, but have much to do with wanting to save, on average, five thousand Russian and Ukrainian soldiers a week, who are dying for no reason whatsoever,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
“Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, is boasting on the front page of The Wall Street Journal that, “Ukraine will not legally recognize the occupation of Crimea. There’s nothing to talk about here.” This statement is very harmful to the Peace Negotiations with Russia in that Crimea was lost years ago under the auspices of President Barack Hussein Obama, and is not even a point of discussion. Nobody is asking Zelenskyy to recognize Crimea as Russian Territory but, if he wants Crimea, why didn’t they fight for it eleven years ago when it was handed over to Russia without a shot being fired? The area also houses, for many years before “the Obama handover,” major Russian submarine bases. It’s inflammatory statements like Zelenskyy’s that makes it so difficult to settle this War. He has nothing to boast about!” Trump wrote.
Trump’s comments came a few hours after a meeting in London aimed at bringing about an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine had been downgraded after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he wouldn’t attend.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt denied that Trump has given an ultimatum to Zelensky to accept a standing peace offer “by the end of the day,” or risk the US walking away from peace talks. “Not by the end of the day today,” Leavitt told CNN’s Jeff Zeleny, contradicting some media reports.
Leavitt maintained that Trump is growing more frustrated and “he needs to see this thing come to an end.” She added that the Ukrainian president is moving in “the wrong direction” when it comes to peace talks and that Zelensky “has been trying to litigate this peace negotiation in the press, and that’s unacceptable to the president.” “His patience is running very thin,” the press secretary added

Emotions have run high today: Zelenskyy’s reply

Zelenskyy said that “emotions have run high today” after talks on the ongoing war in his country were held in London.
Representatives from Ukraine, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and the United States met for the talks.
“The sides expressed their views and respectfully received each other’s positions. It’s important that each side was not just a participant but contributed meaningfully,” Zelensky said on X, noting that “the American side shared its vision” alongside Ukraine and the other European nations.
In what seemed to be an indirect response to US President Donald Trump’s criticism of Zelensky being unwilling to recognize Russian control of Crimea, Zelensky vowed Ukraine would abide by its constitution. He also shared a screenshot of former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s 2018 Crimea Declaration which rejected Russia’s occupation of the peninsula.
“Ukraine will always act in accordance with its Constitution and we are absolutely sure that our partners — in particular the USA — will act in line with its strong decisions,” he said.

Vice President JD Vance has broken his silence after two days of brutal trolling on social media about being among the last few visitors that Pope Francis met hours before his death. While people have started congratulating him, many people called him anti-Christian and blamed him for the Pope’s death. As Vance was in India with his family, he opened up about the coincidence and said he thought about it a lot in the past two days.
Vance said it was pretty crazy but a great blessing for him that he could meet the Pope in his final hours. “I’ve thought a lot about that. I mean, it’s pretty crazy, actually,” Vance said. “And, obviously, when I saw him, I didn’t know that he had less than 24 hours still on this earth. I think it was a great blessing.”
Vance was one of the last officials to meet with Francis. The vice president, who is Catholic, held formal talks with the Vatican’s secretary of state over the weekend before an informal face-to-face with Francis the following day. Francis’ death on April 21 came less than 24 hours after he met with Vance.
“I was lucky that I got to shake his hand and tell him that I pray for him every day, because I did,” Vance said. He said he will always remember Pope Francis as a great pastor, his true expressions of Christian love.

Will JD Vance attend Pope’s funeral?

JD Vance said he is planning neither to attend nor to skip the funeral; he said it has not been given much thought about who is going to attend the funeral from the part of the US government.
On Pope’s objection to President Donald Trump’s policies, including that of deportation, JD Vance said a lot of people, especially the legacy media of America, made the Holy Father, even his life and death about US politics. “He was, obviously, a much broader figure than the US. Yes, I am aware of the disagreements he had over some of the policies of our administration; he also had a lot of agreements with some other policies. I am not gonna soil the man’s legacy by talking about politics,” JD said.