Activist Sharif murder: West Bengal’s Special Task Force (STF) on Sunday claimed to have arrested two key accused, said to be Bangladeshi nationals, from the border town of Bongaon in connection with the murder of Bangladeshi political activist Sharif Osman Bin Hadi. The accused, as per officials, were arrested while they had been attempting to evade the law. 

Accused arrested from North 24 Parganas district

According to STF officials, the accused, identified as Rahul alias Faisal Karim Masud (37) and Alamgir Hossain (34), both natives of Bangladesh, were arrested from Bongaon situated in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district on the intervening night of Friday-Saturday. The official statements issued by the STF suggest that intelligence inputs indicated that the accused duo, involved in serious crimes, had entered India illegally and was hiding near the border. 

“They were seeking shelter in the Bongaon border area with the intention of crossing back into Bangladesh when an opportunity arose,” as per STF’s statement. The STF sleuths, while acting on a tip-off, conducted a raid and swooped down on the duo. 

Accused confess to killing Sharif

The STF said that during preliminary interrogation, the accused confessed to killing Sharif (32), a spokesperson for the Inquilab Moncho. The police said that the accused managed to enter India through Meghalaya and travelled across multiple locations before reaching Bongaon. 

The accused were later booked and were produced in the court on Sunday, which remanded them to police custody. 

Backdrop of the case

Notably, Hadi was shot dead on December 12, 2025, near Box Culvert Road in the Purana Paltan area of Dhaka. As per investigators, he had just left a mosque and was travelling in an e-rickshaw when two bike-borne men approached him. The pillion rider allegedly fired a point-blank shot at Hadi’s head, striking him above the left ear.

Bangladesh police had earlier identified Faisal Karim Masud as the shooter and Alamgir Hossain as the bike rider. Both were described as active members of the Chhatra League, the student wing of the Awami League.

Political motive that triggered the crime

On January 6, 2026, Bangladesh police filed a chargesheet naming 17 individuals in connection with the murder, citing political vengeance as the motive. The killing triggered protests, stage-ins and riots across Bangladesh. The demonstrators even attacked several media organisations they perceived as pro-India, including the offices of The Daily Star and Prothom Alo.