Journalist Debashish Dutta of Kushtia and three family members were killed in a fire in Kolkata, India, according to a report published on August 19, 2026. The other victims were his wife Afsana Sharmin, 25; their two-year-old child Sharnashish Dutta; and Dutta’s father-in-law Md Akram Ali, 64.

Akram Ali’s home was in Thanapara, Kushtia, while Debashish Dutta was the son of Dilip Dutta of Aroya Para in Kushtia town. Family members said Dutta had travelled to Narayana Hospital in Bengaluru on August 4 for his wife’s treatment, leaving behind their six-year-old daughter, Mahima Dutta.

After the treatment, the family had returned to Kolkata the previous day, relatives said. Debashish Dutta had worked with the national daily Ajker Patrika, private television channel Channel Nine, local Kushtia daily Ajker Alo as acting editor, and had formerly served as Kushtia district correspondent for Nagorik Television.