Two people have been shot dead in separate incidents in Khulna city.
Police said both incidents took place on Thursday.
Khulna Sadar Police chief Lokman Hossain said a man, identified only as 27-year-old Tushar, was killed in a shooting following a clash among a group of young men in Purba Baniakhamar around 5:30am.
He was shot in the back and died on the spot. Police recovered his body and sent it to Khulna Medical College Hospital.
Officer Lokman said Tushar was a member of a gang led by Palash, a listed criminal currently behind bars.
Preliminary investigations suggest a rival group was behind the killing, he said, adding that police had identified the suspects and launched an operation to arrest them.
Tushar was also facing two cases involving drugs and illegal firearms.
Labanchara Police chief Syed Mosharraf Hossain said a housewife named only as Khushi, 24, was shot dead in Jinnapara in the afternoon.
The assailants arrived on a motorcycle, shot her twice in the head and fled, he said.
Khushi was taken to Khulna Medical College Hospital in critical condition, where doctors declared her dead.
She was the wife of Suman Sardar, locally known as “Blade Babu”.
Members of his family have faced allegations of involvement in drug-related activities.
Police records show that 66 people were murdered in Khulna city and district over the past nine months, including 33 in the city.
A total of 91 murders were recorded in the 18 months following the mass uprising in 2024.
Advocate Kudrat-e-Khuda, president of the Khulna district chapter of Citizens for Good Governance (SHUJAN), said criminal groups had created fear among residents.
“Gunfire often precedes any verbal exchange, which is fuelling widespread panic,” he said.
Khulna Superintendent of Police Sarkar Omar Farooq said police are conducting special operations to maintain law and order, curb crime, recover illegal weapons and narcotics, and arrest those responsible.