Das becomes third Bangladesh free-thinking blogger murdered so far this year

Unknown attackers have hacked a free- thinking blogger to death in the Bangladesh's northeastern Sylhet city.

"Ananta Bijoy Das, also an organizer of Sylhet's Gonojagoron Mancha (People's Resurgence Platform), died on way to hospital after at least four assailants stabbed him indiscriminately all over at about around 8:30 a.m. local time on Tuesday in the Sylhet city, some 264 km away of capital Dhaka, " said a police official.

The official who preferred to be unnamed said "We are not clear as to what is the cause of the murder."

The assassination occurred just about a month after three men attacked and killed blogger Washiqur Rahman Babu near his home in Bangladesh's capital.

Babu was murdered in a similar attack in Dhaka on March 29 morning. Babu's murder was the latest attack on progressive activists following similar killing of American blogger Avijit Roy, an engineer of Bangladeshi origin.

Roy was killed by machete-wielding assailants near Dhaka University as he and his wife were returning from a book fair in Feburary. His wife, Rafida Bonya Ahmed, suffered head injuries and lost a finger.

"So we understand that the Das' murder is in continuation of attack on free thinkers of the society," said a Gonojagoron Mancha who did not like to be named.

"Ananta who was the key organizer of a local organization called Jukti or Logic and a writer on science," he said. Endi