Roundup: Thousands march in Dhaka demanding justice for publisher-blogger killed by attackers

Thousands of people have marched through the Bangladesh capital, demanding justice for a secular publisher-blogger Faisal Arefin Dipan, who published of another slain blogger Avijit Roy's book.

Protesting the killing of local Jagriti Publishing House's Proprietor Faisal Arefin Dipan and the attack on another Shuddhoshwar Publishing House's Proprietor Ahmedur Rashid Tutul, the writers and publishers in Bangladesh capital Dhaka and elsewhere in the country Monday staged silent procession.

Men and women of all ages carried banners bearing the bloodied faces of the victims.

Protesting the attacks, shopkeepers across the country kept all the book shops shut till Monday afternoon.

They wore black badge, demanded immediate arrest of the attackers and submitted a memorandum to the deputy commissioner of Dhaka demanding security of the writers and publishers.

"Writers and bloggers were attacked first, then the publishers. So far we understand that now readers are going to be the next targets," Alamgir Sikder Loton, president of a publishers' association, told journalists.

"We've taken to the streets to strongly condemn such heinous attacks and demand arrest of the culprits immediately," Alamgir added.

Freethinkers and blog writers asked the government to bring the attackers to justice. They blamed religious fundamentalist groups for the attacks on the secular bloggers.

"Most likely religious fundamentalists were involved in the attacks," said a blogger on condition of anonymity.

He said state-machinery should make all-out efforts to find the real culprits who are still behind the scenes.

As part of the protest programs, many writers and publishers were seen to stage a human chain for hours in Dhaka.

Slain Bangladeshi blogger Avijit Roy's publisher Faisal Arefin Dipan was hacked to death in capital Dhaka on Saturday afternoon hours after unidentified attackers stabbed three persons including another publisher of Roy.

Ansar-Al-Islam, which declared it as the "Bangladesh branch" of al-Qaida, has reportedly claimed responsibility for the killing of secular blogger Faisal Arefin Dipan.

It also claimed credit for another attack on Ahmedur Rashid Tutul, another publisher of the slain blogger Avijit Roy's book, and bloggers Ronovipon Basu and Tareque Rahim, according to the Somoy TV.

The authenticity of the group's claims is yet to be confirmed by police.

Roy, an American of Bangladeshi origin and critic of religious militancy, was hacked to death in February.

Four people including Roy had earlier been killed in same fashion in the Muslim-majority country. Endit