A 25-year-old man was left critically injured after an alleged extortion attempt by Jamaat-Shibir activists escalated into a brutal assault in Chapainawabganj’s Shibganj Upazila, according to police and local sources.

The incident occurred on the evening of December 24 at Umarpur Ghat, where the victim, Abu Sufian Siju, was reportedly seized after refusing to pay extortion money. 

Witnesses said the attackers tied him to an electric pole for nearly an hour and a half and subjected him to severe physical assault, before abandoning him while he was still bound, apparently believing him to be dead.

Siju, the son of Rabiul Islam of Shyampur-Bajitpur village, was rescued by locals and initially taken to the Shibganj Upazila Health Complex. 

Owing to the severity of his injuries, he was later transferred to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital, where he remains under treatment.

According to eyewitnesses, several Jamaat-Shibir activists carried out the attack while residents looked on from a distance, too fearful to intervene. 

Speaking from his hospital bed, Siju alleged that the assault was premeditated and named several individuals he claimed were involved, including Abdur Razzak, locally known as “Bisher Dokandar,” Anwar of Saratnagar village, and Noor, the brother of a poultry trader from Chama Bazar.

Shibganj Police Station Officer-in-Charge Humayun Kabir confirmed that a case has been filed in connection with the attack. 

“We have detained two Jamaat-Shibir activists following raids,” he said, adding that efforts are ongoing to arrest the remaining suspects.

The incident has added to growing concerns over alleged violence and intimidation linked to extremist political groups in parts of the country.

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