Two construction workers were killed by a mob over suspicion of setting fire to a Hindu temple in Dumain Union under Faridpur’s Madhukhali upazila on Thursday.

Five more workers who sustained severe injuries in the mob attack have been undergoing treatment in a local hospital.

The district administration of Faridpur on Friday formed a three-member probe committee to investigate the mob lynching.

Faridpur Deputy Commissioner (DC) Kamrul Ahsan Talukder confirmed that the additional district magistrate of Faridpur would lead the probe.

To maintain law and order, three platoons of the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), under the supervision of an executive magistrate, along with police personnel, have been deployed in the area.

On Thursday evening, a fire broke out at the Kali Mandir (temple) in Panchapalli, Dumain, Madhukhali. Upon noticing the blaze, villagers, predominantly from the Hindu community, launched an attack on construction workers at a nearby primary school under construction, suspecting them of starting the fire, said DC Kamrul Ahsan Talukder.

The angry mob allegedly lynched two workers – Ashraful, 21, son of Shahjahan Khan in Naoapara of the upazila, and his brother Ashadul, 15. The mob also left five other workers injured.

Upon receiving the information, police and the district administration rushed to the scene, but the villagers kept them confined. Eventually, additional forces were deployed to restore order.

One of the injured victims, Liton Molla, recounted that initially, the workers and villagers collaborated to extinguish the fire.

However, the situation escalated, leading to an attack on the workers by the villagers.

Morshed Alam, the superintendent of police of Faridpur, said that several hundred people participated in the attack, prompting the police to resort to firing blank rounds to regain control.

He also mentioned that some policemen sustained injuries during the clash.