Four members of a Hindu family found dead in Bangladesh's Rangpur city

Four members of a Hindu family, including a retired schoolteacher, were found dead inside their locked home in Bangladesh’s Rangpur city under suspicious circumstances, with police investigation under way, as per ANI citing local media.

The bodies of Ganapati Chakraborty, 65, his wife Pritilata, 50, their daughter Agami, 23, and their 12-year-old son Priyam were recovered from their home in the Daspara (Machhuapara) area around 11.30pm on Saturday, police said, suspecting strangulation and robbery in inital probe.

The bodies were found in different parts of the house. Ganapati’s body was recovered from the roof, those of his wife and daughter from the staircase, and Priyam’s body from under a bed, according to Subir Chowdhury, in-charge of Rangpur Metropolitan CID.

“The household belongings were found scattered and in disarray. For now, it appears to be a robbery. However, nothing can be confirmed until the investigation is completed,” Chowdhury said, as quoted by Bangladesh local The Daily Star.

Meanwhile, Sanatan Chakrabarty, deputy commissioner of Rangpur Metropolitan Police and head of the Detective Branch, said the victims were initially suspected to have been strangled. The bodies were sent to Rangpur Medical College Hospital for autopsies, while police, CID and Detective Branch teams launched a joint investigation.

The family had not been heard from since Thursday. Pritilata’s sister Puja Chakraborty told The Daily Star that all four phones had been switched off since Thursday night. “We came to Daspara on Saturday night after finding their phones switched off. The main gate of the house was locked and all the lights inside were off. Police later arrived, broke the lock and entered the house, where they recovered the bodies,” she said.

Ganapati had retired from Rangpur Zilla School in December last year and had since been working as a homeopathic practitioner. His daughter had completed a master’s degree in English, while his son was a Class 5 student. The family had lived in the area for about four years and Ganapati had built the three-storey house, although construction was still incomplete, locals said.

Rangpur police commissioner Mohammad Abdul Mabud said the investigation was being treated as a priority. “We will know how they died once we receive the autopsy reports,” he said.

The deaths come amid continued concern over attacks and violence involving Bangladesh’s Hindu minority. Human Rights Watch has reported attacks on Hindu homes, while minority groups have documented a broader pattern of violence against religious minorities. However, there is currently no evidence as of now establishing that the Rangpur killings were communal or linked to the victims’ religion.