In the small, close-knit community of Nalkhola Bazar in Patuakhali's Dasmina upazila, the grief is palpable.

The Hossain family is mourning an irreplaceable loss -- their son, Jihad Hossain, a 25-year-old postgraduate student at Dhaka's Kabi Nazrul Government College, whose life was tragically cut short during the anti-quota protest in Dhaka on July 19.

Jihad was the youngest of Nurul Amin Molla and Shahanur Begum's four children. He was a beacon of hope for his family, known for his affable nature and academic diligence. Jihad's elder siblings, Jannatul Ferdaus and Zainab Akhter Neela, are married, while his elder brother Jinnat Hossain is a government primary school teacher.

Their father, Nurul Amin, is a farmer.

After graduating from Dasmina Model Government Secondary School in 2016, Jihad pursued higher education in history at Kabi Nazrul Government College, residing with his cousin Kulsoom in Dhaka's Sadarghat area.

He loved to play cricket and aspired to play for the country someday.

On July 19, while heading to a roadside hotel for lunch, Jihad was struck by a bullet that pierced his right thigh. He was declared dead at Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

The news shattered his family. Jinnat Hossain, Jihad's elder brother, recounted the harrowing experience of receiving the devastating news and bringing his brother's body home. "He was not involved in any politics. His death is an irreparable loss to our family. We want justice for this murder," Jinnat said.

Nurul Amin and Shahanur Begum, Jihad's parents, are inconsolable. Shahanur clutches her son's photo, her tears unceasing, questioning the senseless violence that took her son away.

"What was my son's offence? I want justice for my son's murder," she lamented.

Nurul Amin recounted their last phone conversation at 3:00pm on the day of the incident. Jihad had mentioned the tense situation in Dhaka, and Nurul had advised him to stay indoors.

But fate had other plans, and by 5:00pm, the devastating news of Jihad's death had reached him. The sorrow and disbelief are etched deeply in his heart.