Lawless Bangladesh: NCP labour leader Md Motaleb Sikder shot in the head in Khulna, days after Sharif Osman Hadi killing

NCP leader shot in Bangladesh
Md Motaleb Sikder (Image via X/shikhar711)

A senior labour leader from Bangladesh’s National Citizens Party (NCP) was shot in the head in Khulna district of Bangladesh on Monday, 22nd December, marking the second major shooting of a politician this month amid growing concerns of lawlessness and anarchy. The incident comes at a time when Bangladesh is already tense due to violent protests following the killing of anti-India leader Sharif Osman Bin Hadi.

Md Motaleb Sikder, 42, who leads the NCP’s workers’ group as central organiser and Khulna divisional convener of Jatiya Sramik Shakti, was hit around 12:15 pm at a house in the Sonadanga area of Bangladesh, Saif Newaz from the NCP’s Khulna unit was quoted by Prothom Alo about it. Party folks said Sikder was busy setting up an upcoming labour rally in the division. Soon after the attack, reports suggested that his condition was critical. However, party sources later clarified that the bullet only grazed his skull and that his condition has now stabilised.

This attack happened just days after Sharif Osman Hadi, the radical anti-India leader from last year’s July uprising, was killed. Hadi got shot up close on 12th December while riding in a battery auto-rickshaw in Dhaka’s Bijoynagar. Two guys on a bike pulled up and blasted him in the head, say local reports.

Bangladesh has been witnessing rampant violence, mob attacks and incidents of vandalism after the fall of the Hasina government in August 2024. The caretaker government under the leadership of Md Yunus has been largely ineffective in restoring peace and normalcy in the impoverished country.

Written by OpIndia Staff
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