A handful of community members gathered in front of Monroe College for last night’s candlelit vigil in honor of Bimal Chanda. Eight flames honored the 59-year-old Fordham resident who died two weeks ago as the result of a brutal beating at the hands of two unidentified thugs.

The turnout for the vigil was much smaller than expected, but organizers said that was not because there wasn’t support for the victim.

Mohammed Solaiman Ali, a friend of Chanda’s who organized the event said it was not a lack of respect for Mr. Chanda that kept many members of the local Bangladeshi and Indian communities away from the vigil, but rather fear.

“They are afraid. They don’t want people to see their faces,” Ali said. “Even my wife said she wouldn’t come tonight. She said, ‘Don’t make yourself a target.’”

Ali understands this fear all too well. In the summer of 2007, he was the victim of a series of crimes. A woman allegedly burglarized Ali’s Fordham-area home twice within a matter of weeks. When he confronted the suspect about the burglary, Ali says she threatened him and later physically assaulted him with a male partner.

“I couldn’t live properly, do my job properly, or even be on my block because I didn’t feel secure,” Ali says.

When Ali heard about the attack against Chanda he decided it was time to send a message to the community: violence against innocent people must stop.

“If you want to take the money, then fine, take the money,” Ali said, “But don’t kill innocent people.”

Another Fordham-area resident, who identified himself as Mr. Tapin, attended the ceremony but did not wish to give his full name. He came to the vigil to honor Chanda and to support Ali’s message.

“We are a peaceful people living in this country. We want to live in peace,” Tapin said. “This kind of thing has to go away.”

Tapin said he hoped to see increased police patrols and neighborhood watch associations develop as a result of Chanda’s tragic death.

For their part, police and community officials say they are committed to increasing safety in the 52nd Precinct, where three murders and a high-profile shooting occurred during the first two weeks of November.

At the Community Board 7 meeting immediately following the vigil, Police Inspector Dowling provided an update on the Chanda case.

He said that the evidence points to robbery as the sole motive. Some community members had speculated that Chanda was targeted due to his ethnicity.

Dowling also asked for the community’s help in finding the perpetrators as officers from the 52nd Precinct passed out fliers with pictures and details about the two young, male suspects wanted in the case.

“I guarantee you, we will solve this crime,” Dowling said. “But I need your assistance. If you see something, say something,” Dowling said.