Chattogram is witnessing a fresh surge in violence, raising serious concerns over law enforcement effectiveness just weeks ahead of the general election.
Despite months of intensified operations by police and other agencies, criminal groups remain active. Many offenders, officials admit, return to crime soon after securing bail.
After a brief lull, murders and armed attacks spiked again this week in several violence-prone areas. The killing of BNP worker Jana Alam Sikder in Raozan has renewed public fear and added a political edge to the deteriorating situation.
In other incidents, gunmen fired shotgun pellets at the residence of an industrialist over extortion demands. In Chadgaon, armed criminals openly threatened a government office, brazenly challenging state authority.
Chattogram Range Deputy Inspector General of Police Ahsan Habib Palash acknowledged that while police are working “relentlessly,” persistent violence exposes deep weaknesses in policing and prosecution.
Since 5 August 2024, at least 50 murders have been recorded in Chattogram city and nearby upazilas. Of these, officials say 30 were politically motivated, while the rest stemmed from gang rivalries, extortion, and business disputes.
The city is still recovering from the massive arms looting that took place in August 2024, when 948 firearms were stolen from eight Chattogram Metropolitan Police stations and outposts. While most have been recovered, 155 weapons remain missing. In the wider district, dozens of stolen firearms are also still unaccounted for.
Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Zahidul Islam Mian told Times of Bangladesh that the administration is now rethinking its approach. “Obviously, the forces and the administration need to be reorganised, and the law-enforcement mechanism must be reset,” he said.
Officials argue that the current wave of violence is driven mainly by economic disputes such as extortion, debt conflicts, and business turf wars, rather than organised political clashes. However, these criminal networks have long thrived on political patronage, selective enforcement, and weak deterrence.
With elections approaching, the stakes are high. Police have identified nearly three-quarters of the city’s 1,965 polling centres as risky, including 656 high-risk centres. Election officials warn that unrecovered weapons looted during the July unrest pose a direct threat to election security.
Even if voting proceeds without major disruption, officials fear the sight of armed criminals roaming freely could undermine public confidence, turning law-and-order failure into a powerful symbol of governance fatigue ahead of the polls.
