A mob set fire to the office of Desh Sanjog, a Khulna-based daily newspaper, allegedly for referring to Sheikh Hasina as the incumbent prime minister in a news report.

The incident took place around 7:00pm yesterday in the city's Chhoto Mirzapur area. The identities of the perpetrators remain unknown.

According to witnesses, after the Maghrib prayers, a group of 30 to 40 people broke the lock of the office's shutter, brought furniture and other materials out onto the street, vandalised those, and then set them on fire.

Locals later managed to bring the fire under control. Upon receiving information, police and journalists arrived at the scene.

Khulna Sadar Police Station Officer-in-Charge Hawlader Sanowar Hossain Masum told The Daily Star, "I visited the office and informed higher authorities. We are trying to find those behind the arson."

On yesterday's edition of Desh Sanjog, the front-page headline covering the death of an Awami League leader read: "Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and AL Leaders Mourn the Death of Kazi Enayet."

The report mistakenly referred to Sheikh Hasina as the sitting prime minister and listed several former MPs from Khulna constituencies as incumbents. The errors sparked outrage on social media, prompting criticism from many users.

ARTICLE RETRACTED

Last night, Desh Sanjog released a statement, announcing the retraction of the article and the removal of the shift in charge of its news department.

In the statement, signed by Munshi Mahbub Alam Sohag, editor of the daily and also the office secretary of Awami League's Khulna city unit, it was stated that the error occurred due to the unedited publication of a press release issued by the Awami League.

"The publisher, editor, executive editor, and the entire news team of Desh Sanjog deeply regret this unintended mistake and sincerely apologise… We assure our readers that necessary precautions will be taken to prevent such incidents in the future," the statement added.