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Published on September 3, 2025
Executive Summary
Bangladesh is in its deepest crisis in over a decade. The military-backed interim government that replaced Sheikh Hasina in 2024 has failed to stabilize the country, leaving the economy, security, and democracy in free fall.
Bangladesh today is in a state of economic ruin, political paralysis, and social unrest. Without an inclusive national election that brings all parties, including the Awami League and BNP, to the table, the cycle of instability will only deepen.
A Year of Turmoil in Bangladesh
Over the past year, Bangladesh has experienced an unprecedented deterioration in governance, law and order, and economic stability. Following the military-backed removal of Sheikh Hasina in August 2024, the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus has failed to restore basic security, protect human rights, or uphold democratic norms.
The country faces a convergence of crises: a collapsing economy, rising unemployment, escalating violence against women and minorities, rampant mob lynchings, arbitrary detentions, and attacks on journalists. Political freedoms are virtually nonexistent, and judicial independence has been undermined.
Bangladesh Turned Into The Land of Anarchy
This report examines the multifaceted crisis gripping Bangladesh, highlighting the urgent need for systemic reform and inclusive elections to restore stability and democratic governance.
From Growth to Collapse: Bangladesh’s Economic Freefall
Bangladesh’s economic engine, once a regional success story, is now faltering under the mismanagement of the Yunus-led interim government. GDP growth has fallen below 3%, compared to over 7% in 2023 under the previous administration, while inflation has surged past 12%, up from 5.6% the previous year, sharply eroding citizens’ purchasing power. The Ready-Made Garments (RMG) industry, which fueled the nation’s export-led growth, has laid off over 150,000 workers, whereas it had been adding tens of thousands of jobs annually in 2023. Construction projects are largely stalled, leaving tens of thousands unemployed, and SMEs are shrinking or closing due to bureaucratic interference, a stark contrast to 2023 when small businesses were expanding steadily. Even remittances, a vital lifeline for millions, have slowed after consistent growth in previous years.
Economy slows, investment drops 10-year low
Youth unemployment has reached alarming heights, exceeding 30% among educated graduates, compared with around 18% in 2023, fueling frustration and social instability. Thousands of skilled workers are now seeking migration to Malaysia, the Middle East, and Europe, creating a dangerous brain drain that threatens long-term national growth. The societal consequences are dire: rising crime, growing radicalization, and social unrest have become common as young citizens face diminishing legitimate opportunities.
PPRC Survey Report: Poverty and Inequality on the Rise in Bangladesh
Under Yunus, economic deterioration is not just a slowdown; it is a systemic collapse, with cascading effects on livelihoods, social stability, and the very foundations of Bangladesh’s future. Compared with the relative stability and growth of the previous administration, the country is now sliding toward economic and social chaos.
(make an infographic that shows the difference between the last 1 years economic condition with the previous years)
Lawlessness Rules: Murder, Mob Violence, and Vigilantism
Under the Yunus-led interim government, Bangladesh’s law and order situation has plunged into unprecedented chaos, exposing ordinary citizens to a relentless wave of crime, violence, and arbitrary killings.
Bangladesh sees 11 murders per day as law and order worsens
In just the first six months of 2025, police recorded 1,930 murders, a sharp 25.9% increase from the 1,533 cases during the same period in 2024. Each month shows a worsening trend, with June alone reporting 343 killings, reflecting the government’s complete inability to maintain even the most basic security. Political interference has systematically weakened the police force, with loyalists appointed over experienced officers, top positions left vacant for months, and senior personnel purged for political reasons. The result is a law enforcement apparatus that is incapable of controlling crime or protecting citizens.
The collapse of formal justice has fueled a parallel surge in mob violence and vigilantism. Between August 2024 and July 2025, at least 637 people were lynched by mobs, compared to just 51 deaths under mob violence in 2023, a shocking 1,250% increase. These lynchings often target individuals over suspicions of theft, blasphemy, or even political identity, demonstrating how mob justice has become a substitute for the state’s failed institutions. The brutal public lynching of two Hindu devotees, Ruplal Das and Pradeep Das, in Rangpur over a suspected theft has gone viral, revealing the terrifying normalization of such violence.
637 killed in mob violence, lynching since Sheikh Hasina's ouster
The situation is further aggravated by the discovery of corpses in rivers, with an average of 43 bodies recovered monthly in 2025, 30% of which remain unidentified. Authorities cite resource constraints and delayed recovery, but analysts warn that criminals are increasingly using rivers as dumping grounds, confident that their victims will go unrecognized and unpunished.
Average of 43 Bodies Found in Rivers Each Month
The combination of rising criminal activity, extrajudicial killings, and unchecked mob violence paints a grim picture of a state in freefall. Citizens have lost faith in courts, police, and the justice system, increasingly resorting to taking matters into their own hands. The Yunus government’s failure to reform law enforcement, hold perpetrators accountable, and restore the rule of law has left Bangladesh teetering on the brink of anarchy, where fear and violence dictate everyday life, and the very fabric of society is at risk of unraveling.
Minorities Targeted, Militancy Thrives: A Year of Lawlessness Under Interim Govt
Under the Yunus-led interim government, Bangladesh is facing an alarming surge of Islamist militancy alongside systematic targeting of religious and ethnic minorities, signaling a deep breakdown of governance and public safety. Over the past year, radical Islamist groups have gained momentum, often operating with political tolerance, while minority communities have become increasingly vulnerable to attacks, intimidation, and social exclusion.
Deaths in mob violence on rise
Since August 2024, at least 111 people have been killed in mob violence, including incidents targeting minority groups. In Rangpur’s Taraganj Upazila, two Hindu devotees, Ruplal Das (40) and Pradeep Das (35), were lynched in public over alleged theft, with videos circulating widely. In the same period, 14 Hindu homes in Rangpur were vandalized, and attacks against minority-owned businesses and temples have been reported repeatedly in Dhaka, Chittagong, and the northern districts. The Chittagong Hill Tracts remain a hotspot for harassment against indigenous groups, including displacement and property destruction.
Begged for life, yet the mob did not spare Ruplal and Pradip
Meanwhile, Islamist militancy has grown under the shadow of government inaction. Extremist networks have carried out threats, attacks, and radicalization campaigns, including targeting secular citizens, activists, and minorities. Reports indicate that at least 40 incidents of extremist-led violence against minorities occurred in the first half of 2025 alone, many involving physical assaults or intimidation. Police frequently fail to intervene, investigations are slow or absent, and prosecutions are rare, leaving extremists to act with near impunity.
The combination of rising militant activity and deliberate targeting of minorities paints a grim picture. Bangladesh is becoming a country where fear, sectarianism, and radicalization flourish, and the interim government’s inaction has allowed this crisis to escalate unchecked. The protection of minorities and the prevention of extremist violence remain urgently unaddressed, highlighting the failure of the Yunus administration to uphold law, order, and constitutional rights.
Escalating Violence Against Women; No One Is Safe Anywhere
Under the Yunus-led interim government, Bangladesh has witnessed a disturbing escalation in violence against women, exposing the systemic collapse of law enforcement and social safeguards. In just the first six months of 2025, official records indicate over 4,200 cases of rape and sexual assault, including at least 650 incidents of gang rape, a stark rise from 3,100 cases during the same period in 2024. These figures likely understate the crisis, as countless survivors refrain from reporting due to fear of retaliation or skepticism toward the authorities.
Child rape cases rise nearly 75% in 7 months
Women now face mounting risks in both public and private spaces. Domestic violence has surged, often exacerbated by economic insecurity and social unrest, while public assaults, sometimes carried out by mobs or politically connected perpetrators, have grown increasingly brazen. The viral circulation of assault videos on social media further deepens trauma, amplifies humiliation, and creates a chilling culture of impunity, emboldening criminals while discouraging survivors from seeking justice.
Epidemic of Sexual Violence in Bangladesh
The government’s inaction is glaring. Investigations are frequently delayed or abandoned, police accountability is near nonexistent, and protective measures are almost entirely absent. High-profile cases in Dhaka, Chittagong, and Rangpur reveal that political connections or social status often shield perpetrators from prosecution, sending a clear signal that violence against women is tolerated, if not indirectly encouraged, under Yunus.
This surge in gender-based violence reflects more than just individual criminality; it underscores a state-level failure. By allowing such crimes to proliferate unchecked, the interim government has not only endangered women but also eroded public trust in institutions meant to uphold justice and safety. The result is a society where women are living in constant fear, and Bangladesh’s international reputation as a safe and rights-respecting country is rapidly deteriorating.
Judiciary Turned Into a Political Weapon
Bangladesh’s judicial system has collapsed into a tool for political repression under the Yunus-led interim government. Courts, once meant to uphold justice and protect citizens’ rights, now serve the interests of a military-backed regime, issuing politically motivated verdicts while denying bail to opposition activists and dissenters. Arbitrary detentions have become routine, with thousands held without trial, often for months or even years, under the pretext of maintaining law and order.
Anti-National Forces Staged Mock Trial Against Sheikh Hasina
The scale of repression is staggering. According to the Manabadhikar Shongskriti Foundation, as of July 2025, over 516,000 people have been implicated in 1,567 wholesale criminal cases, yet only 79,491 have been named, leaving 436,836 “unnamed”. This mechanism allows authorities to arrest anyone at whim, effectively criminalizing political dissent and stifling free expression. Protest movements, student activism, labor union actions, and opposition party activities have all been targeted, with mass arrests used as a primary tool of control.
Wholesale criminal cases filed across Bangladesh
High-profile cases highlight the politicization of the judiciary. Nearly 400 former ministers, MPs, and other Awami League officials have been named in over 1,170 politically motivated cases, many involving fabricated charges. Individuals like former mayors remain in detention for events that occurred while they were outside the country, demonstrating the arbitrary nature of arrests. Meanwhile, judicial independence has eroded to the point that courts routinely deny bail to opposition members, enforce preventive detention under draconian laws, and rubber-stamp the regime’s crackdown on dissent.
This systematic collapse of judicial independence, coupled with mass arbitrary detentions, has created a climate of fear, repression, and lawlessness, where the legal system no longer serves justice but acts as a weapon against political opponents and citizens seeking accountability. Under Yunus, Bangladesh has effectively become a state where fear replaces freedom, and repression replaces justice.
Surge In Extra-Judicial Killings
Since taking power in August 2024, the Yunus-led Interim Government has presided over a sharp rise in extra-judicial killings, transforming Bangladesh into a climate of fear. Official and independent reports indicate that security forces have frequently resorted to so-called “crossfire” operations, which have become a euphemism for targeted killings of opposition activists, dissidents, and alleged criminals. In the first year of Yunus’s rule, at least 44 police officers were given legal indemnity for killings in such operations, while hundreds of honest, competent officers were removed from key positions purely for political loyalty reasons, further eroding institutional accountability.
Bangladesh Sees Surge in Extrajudicial Killings, Custodial Deaths Under Interim Government
Disappearances of activists have also skyrocketed. High-profile detentions have often ended with the victims vanishing without a trace, leaving families in despair and society in terror. Reports suggest that hundreds of individuals remain unaccounted for, while those responsible within the security apparatus face no prosecution or even investigation. This lack of accountability has emboldened security agencies to operate with impunity, undermining the rule of law and contributing to the perception that the state itself is complicit in systematic repression.
Extrajudicial killings persist despite decline
Under Yunus, extra-judicial killings have become a tool of political control, a direct message to anyone opposing the regime: dissent will be silenced, and justice abandoned. This unchecked use of lethal force not only violates fundamental human rights but has also normalized violence as a method of governance, driving Bangladesh further into chaos.
Human Rights in Freefall
Bangladesh’s human rights situation has deteriorated sharply under the Yunus-led Interim Government. Civil liberties are under siege, with freedom of speech, assembly, and association increasingly curtailed. Independent watchdogs such as Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights have repeatedly flagged the country for arbitrary arrests, torture, and mass surveillance.
Are human rights eroding under Muhammad Yunus?
Since August 2024, over 516,000 individuals have been implicated in politically motivated criminal cases, many unnamed, enabling the authorities to detain anyone at whim. Journalists and activists are routinely threatened, harassed, or jailed, creating a climate of fear that suppresses dissent. Enforced disappearances remain rampant, with dozens of opposition leaders and human rights defenders disappearing, their whereabouts unknown.
Mass surveillance and intimidation campaigns have intensified. Reports indicate that social media activity is monitored, and critics of the government face reprisals ranging from public harassment to arbitrary detention. Citizens have begun to self-censor out of fear, reflecting the collapse of basic freedoms that are fundamental to any democratic society.
Bangladesh: Review Laws and Protect Human Rights Standards
International observers note that the Yunus administration’s failures have eroded the rule of law, undermined judicial independence, and empowered security agencies to operate with impunity, leaving Bangladesh in a state of systemic human rights crisis. The country now faces a pervasive climate of fear, where ordinary citizens, journalists, and minority communities are left vulnerable to abuse, with no institutional safeguards to protect them.
The trajectory under Yunus is clear: Bangladesh’s civil society and democratic institutions are being hollowed out, leaving the population exposed to repression and lawlessness on an unprecedented scale.
The Only Way to Recovery
Bangladesh is at a crossroads. After a year under the Yunus-led interim government, the country faces a deepening economic crisis, rising unemployment, widespread violence, and severe human rights abuses. Everyday life has become increasingly unsafe, with ordinary citizens bearing the brunt of lawlessness, arbitrary arrests, and social instability. The data is stark: rising murder rates, mass detentions of opposition activists, attacks on journalists, and continued mob violence all point to a state in serious distress.
Bangladesh Is a South Asian Time Bomb
The only realistic way forward is free, fair, and inclusive national elections that involve all major political parties under a neutral caretaker arrangement. The current interim government, closely tied to the National Citizens’ Party (NCP), has already shown clear favoritism and political bias, making it incapable of conducting impartial elections. Without a truly neutral framework, any electoral process would risk cementing the current climate of repression, lawlessness, and injustice.
A free and inclusive election is all we want
International support and oversight are essential to ensure transparency and fairness. At the same time, domestic institutions must be strengthened: judicial independence restored, press freedom guaranteed, and human rights protections fully enforced. These steps are vital not just for immediate stability, but to rebuild public trust, curb radicalization, and create a foundation for long-term democracy.
Bangladesh can recover, but it requires decisive action. Inclusive elections, accountability, and the restoration of rights are the only way to reverse the decline and give citizens hope for a safe, just, and democratic future.
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