Hindu trader beaten to death in Bangladesh over bananas

A Hindu businessman was beaten to death in Bangladesh’s Gazipur by three members of a family following a dispute over bananas, local media reported. It has not been confirmed whether the incident that occurred on Saturday in the Kaliganj area of Gazipur district is related to the recent spate of violence against Hindus in Bangladesh. The deceased, Liton Chandra Ghosh, 55, was the owner of ‘Baishakhi Sweetmeat and Hotel’, The Daily Star reported.

According to Zakir Hossain, Officer-in-Charge of Kaliganj Police Station, three members of a family -- Swapan Mia, 55, his wife Majeda Khatun, 45, and their son Masum Mia, 28 — have been detained for their suspected involvement in the killing.  Police stated that Masum owns a banana plantation, and a bunch of bananas went missing from it. He spotted the bananas in Liton’s hotel while searching, and an argument started between the two parties over this.

“The accused punched and kicked Liton, causing him to fall to the ground and die on the spot,” police said. Liton’s family said Masum came to the hotel around 11:00 am. At that time, he had an argument with a hotel employee over a trivial incident. Later, Masum’s father and mother came to the spot and got into a fight. Police are investigating the incident, the report said.