The victim has been identified as Chanchal Chandra Bhoumik, a resident of Lakshmipur village in Cumilla district. He had been working at a garage in the Khanabari Mosque Market area for several years.

According to reports, the incident took place on Friday night after Bhoumik retired to sleep inside the garage following a day’s work. Unidentified assailants allegedly set the garage on fire while he was inside. With large quantities of petrol, engine oil and other inflammable materials stored at the site, the fire spread rapidly, NDTV reported.

Bhoumik died from suffocation and severe burn injuries, officials said.

Eyewitnesses described the incident as a planned attack, noting that CCTV footage captured unidentified individuals setting the garage ablaze. Police have seized the surveillance footage and launched an investigation.

“The police are conducting a thorough investigation considering the seriousness of the case. We have recovered the body and seized the CCTV footage. Multiple teams are working to identify and arrest those responsible,” a Bangladeshi official told NDTV.

The killing comes amid a reported spike in attacks on minorities, particularly Hindus, in Bangladesh over the past several months. The situation has reportedly worsened following the death of anti-India radical student leader Sharif Osman Hadi.

In a separate incident, Dipu Chandra Das, a Hindu garment factory worker, was lynched by a mob and later set on fire over allegations of blasphemy. A video of the killing subsequently went viral on social media, drawing widespread condemnation.