Ain o Salish Kendra expresses its grave concern and condemns the brutal murder of Avijit Roy, editor and writer of the ‘Muktomona’ Blog, which occurred in University of Dhaka Area on 26 February 2015.

According to media reports, some assailants carried out an attack with sharp machete on Avijit Roy and his wife Rafida Ahmed on 26 February 2015 at around 9 pm. Avijit died at around 10 pm while he was under treatment at Dhaka Medical College Hospital. His wife Rafida is still fighting for survival under critical condition.

ASK believes that the presence of law enforcing agencies close to the spot where Avijit was hacked to death reveals their ultimate nonchalant attitudes towards their duties and responsibilities. Such one after another threats and incidents are questioning skills and sincerity of law enforcing agencies. On top of that, it is a matter of grave concern for not being able to arrest the perpetrators after passing 72 hours of the incident.

As a member of a progressive family, Avijit Roy had been engaged in scientific and progressive writing for a long time and was also vocal about rights of sexual minorities. Relatives and close ones claimed that Avijit had been receiving threats for a long time due to his publications along with progressive and anti-communal posts on his blog and his father as well.

The death of talented, progressive writer and freethinker Avijit is truly an irreparable loss for us and free-thoughts’ movements as well. We believe that the attack on freethinker poet Humayun Azad in a similar manner at the same spot in 2004, threats on other bloggers and writers, and closing down of the stall of Rodela Prokashoni at Ekushe book fair–are all connected with the killing Avijit.

We urge the government to bring Avijit’s perpetrators to justice through immediate, effective and impartial investigation. We hope that the law enforcers would take preventive measures not to let anyone repeat this incident again by being active and effective upon that matter. We express heartfelt sympathy to the bereaved family and hope that Avijit’s wife as well as colleague Rafida would be able to get well soon. At the same time, we invite all the progressive minded people to come forward for more progressive movements and to practice freethinking to protest such brutal attack. That would be the best way to show respect towards Avijit’s works.