It seems there is no end to sensational news from Bangladesh. Smack on the face of the dramatic revelation of the phone conversations of a civil society stalwart that shook the society, came the horrific news of a most brutal killing of an activist writer in public view. His offense was seemingly his writings that advocated tolerance, freedom from bigotry of all kinds, love and respect for all humans, and above all a just society.  

This is not a murder of vengeance, neither is it to demonstrate a particular protest against a political party. This is an expression of anger and disapproval of the way of thinking and philosophy of a majority in the world who believe in human values of life, liberty, and disapproval of religious bigotry, contrary to the belief of the perpetrators of the heinous crime. The perpetrators of this heinous crime believe in imposing on people a religious creed purported (in false belief) to be rooted in Islam that opposes any values of universal human freedom in speech, action and all aspects of personal life. In Bangladesh it has happened before, and it has happened now. A renowned author and activist was a victim of such bigots several years ago because he had promoted human values of love and tolerance above radical religious teachings. And this will continue to happen because the trends in Bangladesh are quite opposite to what we thought would be the guiding principles of our country. 

The murder of Avijit is only the tip of the iceberg; the iceberg of the forces that had opposed Bangladesh from the day it had been conceptualised, from the days that our freedom movement had begun. It was not only a struggle to free its people from the oppression of a junta obsessed with a fanatical idea to join completely different ethnic and linguistic communities under the slogan of a common religion, but also a struggle to establish a society that embraces diversity in religion, ethnicity, and respect for human rights. That is why the founding fathers of the country enshrined in the country's constitution of the country the core values of democracy, nationalism, secularism, and egalitarianism. When they thought of Bangladesh they envisioned a society that would be above narrow concerns of religious identity, harassment of people because of their religious beliefs, ethnic affiliation, or choices in their personal lives.  

Sadly, the Bangladesh that was born out of the sacrifices of millions forty four years ago is not the same today. The forces that had opposed the country before its birth have not only resurfaced, they are a powerful force now. These are forces that do not believe in a secular society, nor do they believe in free speech or promotion of human values of tolerance, mutual respect, and diversity of beliefs and thoughts. These are forces that want the world to adhere to a uniform thinking of one thought, and rigid implementation of that thought. 

Never before has Bangladesh faced such deep fault lines in politics and society. On the one hand we have the loyalists from the Liberation War who firmly believed in and fought for a democratic and secular society; and on the other are the forces that opposed these principles and fought side by side with a junta that wanted our land. It was our national failure that we could not contain the evil forces from rearing their heads again soon after the birth of our new nation because our leaders were too complacent or lacking in foresight. Our hard earned independence and the values of our struggle were hijacked, and were replaced by slogans that recalled the values that we had rejected. Today, we are paying the price of the years of nurturing and ignoring the rebirth of the radical forces that we wanted to get rid of because of our divisive politics and desire for personal gain in lieu of national interest.

Dark forces of evil grow when virtuous forces fail to oppose them or register their presence. The murder of Avijit can be viewed as another criminal offence and many people may want to let this be handled by the law enforcing agencies. But this will be a callous approach to dealing with a danger that may impose a more serious threat to not only the country but the way we all want to live. This is an ominous signal to the coming of a society that is bound up in its thoughts, actions, and speech. Because this is the society and country that the perpetrators of the crime believe in and want to impose on everybody. This murderous act is not on individual or his religious persuasion, but Bangladesh and the values it was fought for.

The writer is a political analyst and commentator.