Nipul’s dismembered body was found at a railway station in the southwestern district of Chuadanga, which borders India, according to news reports. His family told journalists he had left his house the night before after receiving a phone call and did not return home.
Nipul’s family, including his wife, mother, and brother, said they believed this was a premeditated murder, according to news reports. Nipul’s brother, Bakul, said that local drug traffickers were responsible for the journalist’s death, reports said.
Prior to his death, Nipul had written stories on local drug trafficking for the local Bengali-language daily Dainik Mathabhanga, according to news reports. The journalist’s family said he had received death threats from local drug traffickers and groups who he had accused in his reports of attempting to illegally seize homes and other property, the reports said.
Journalists covering drug trafficking in the Chuadanga region have been targeted in recent years, according to CPJ research.
Police said they were investigating the murder, according to news reports.