The quiet residential lane of Rajshahi’s Dabtala area was thrown into chaos on Thursday afternoon when the teenage son of a metropolitan court judge was fatally stabbed inside their rented flat – an attack so sudden and shocking that even investigators are struggling to piece together the motive.

The incident sent shockwaves through the judicial community, prompting the judges to make demands for ensuring security, warning that failure to do so will result in a collective pen-down strike starting tomorrow.

Fifteen-year-old Tawshif Rahman Suman, a ninth-grader, had been at home with his mother when a young man, later identified as Limon Mia, entered the flat, claiming to be a relative of the family.

Minutes later, neighbours heard frantic calls for help. By the time people rushed upstairs, both the mother and son were found lying brutally injured.

Suman could not be saved. His mother, Tasmin Nahar Lucy, was rushed to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital (RMCH), bleeding heavily and barely conscious. On Friday afternoon, still reeling from the loss of his only son, Judge Abdur Rahman filed a murder case with Rajpara police station, naming Limon as the lone accused.

The police had already arrested him from the crime scene, wounded and disoriented after what appeared to be a violent struggle inside the flat.

“We will produce him before the court. The motive behind this horrific attack will become clearer after interrogation,” said Gaziur Rahman, deputy commissioner for Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime of Rajshahi Metropolitan Police.

At RMCH, the autopsy team worked through the morning, examining the boy’s injuries.

“The child died from massive blood loss,” said Associate Professor Kafil Uddin, who led the forensic examination.

Deep stab wounds had severed major blood vessels in Suman’s right thigh, leg and left arm, he said. The forensic team also found bruises on his neck, suggesting an attempted smothering, “likely done using a soft object,” he said, though it was not the primary cause of death.

Investigators now believe the stabbing and suffocation attempt occurred almost simultaneously in a frenzied attack.

Meanwhile, Limon, himself injured, remains under police guard at RMCH.

Officers are checking CCTV footage, interviewing residents of the building and reviewing phone records to understand why he targeted the judge’s family.

As police tighten security around judicial residences in Rajshahi and beyond, the judge waits by his wife’s bedside, mourning a son and seeking answers to a crime that has shaken the entire city.

Judges issue ultimatum

Following the attack on the judge’s house in Rajshahi, the Bangladesh Judicial Service Association made two key demands, including the deployment of security personnel at judges’ residences and during their travel across all courts in the country. On Friday, the Bangladesh Judicial Service Association announced that lower court judges would begin a pen-down strike from tomorrow if their demands were not met within 48 hours.

Aside from enhanced security, the judges demanded strict action against the police officers involved in negligence over judicial security during the Rajshahi incident, as well as those who acted unprofessionally by presenting the arrested suspect to the media unlawfully.

In a statement, the judges noted that the Supreme Court has repeatedly urged the government to provide security at all court and tribunal premises, courtrooms, judges’ residences, and vehicles, but no visible action has been taken.

The statement highlighted that although members of the judiciary perform some of the most critical and high-risk duties of the state, they and their families remain vulnerable. It also pointed out that district-level judges often lack access to adequate government housing or transportation. Judges in subordinate courts frequently have to live in unprotected rented homes and travel by rickshaw, van, or even on foot.

The judges further announced that all courts nationwide will observe the incident by wearing black badges at their workplaces on Sunday.