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DHAKA: A mob has damaged 66 houses and set on fire over 20 homes of Hindus in Bangladesh over an alleged blasphemous social media post amid protests by the minority community against temple vandalism incidents during the Durga Puja celebrations last week, authorities said on Monday. The arson attack by over a hundred people happened late on Sunday in a village in Rangpur district’s Pirganj upazila, about 255 kms from Dhaka, the bdnews24.com reported.
The police rushed to the village as tension mounted over a rumour that a Hindu resident had made a “blasphemous” post on Facebook, assistant police Superintendent Mohammad Kamruzzaman told reporters. “The incident took place after 10pm (local time) on Sunday but firefighters doused the blaze within a short period (and) the situation is now under full control,” he said. No casualties were reported but 66 houses were damaged and 20 burnt during the attack, the officer said.
As many as 52 suspects have been arrested while a manhunt was launched for more suspects under a “combing operation” in collaboration with other security forces, he added. As the police stood guard around the man’s home, the attackers set fire to other homes nearby, the report said. According to a report by the fire service control room, the attack scene indicated that at least 29 residential houses, two kitchens, two barns and 20 haystacks belonging to 15 different owners were torched in Pirganj’s Majhipara. It said an “unruly crowd” has been identified as the cause of fire.
The arson incident occurred amid rising communal tension over an alleged blasphemy incident at a Durga Puja venue in Cumilla which led to attacks on Hindu temples and clashes between vandals and the police in Cumilla, Chandpur, Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Bandarban, Moulvibazar, Gazipur, Chapainawabganj, Feni and other districts. Dozens of people have been arrested over the attacks, the report said. Four Muslim protesters were killed in the clashes with police in Haziganj, the worst scene of the violence, on Wednesday and Thursday, while the body of a Hindu devotee was found at a pond in nearby Begumbanj of Noakhali district.
The Bangladesh Hindu-Buddhist-Christial Unity Council said at least 70 puja pavilions and temples were attacked in the previous three days of violence. It alleges that at least four Hindu devotees have died in the attacks in Chandpur and Noakhali. Authorities have not confirmed the figures.
Meanwhile, the elite anti-crime force Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) has arrested two more men in connection with the looting and vandalism of temples and shops belonging to the Hindu minority community in Feni, about 155 kms from Dhaka. On Saturday, one person was arrested in connection with the attack which took place when the Feni Puja celebration committee and its supporters were preparing to protest against the communal violence in the country.
Approximately 40 people were injured in the violence. On Sunday, two cases were filed against 400 unnamed people.
On Monday, Dhaka University students joined hands with protesting religious groups against the attacks on the temples, puja venues and homes of the Hindu community across Bangladesh, the report said.The protesters called for the formation of a separate ministry to handle affairs related to minority groups. The communal tensions came as the minority Hindus, who constitute 9% of Bangladesh’s 160 million population, celebrated their largest religious festival Durga Puja last week. PM Sheikh Hasina has said the attacks were part of a “well-designed plot” to destabilise the country. In a separate report, the bdnews24.com, quoting the prominent rights group in Bangladesh Ain o Salish Kendra, said that as many as 3,679 attacks on the minority Hindu community took place between January 2013 and September this year.
The police rushed to the village as tension mounted over a rumour that a Hindu resident had made a “blasphemous” post on Facebook, assistant police Superintendent Mohammad Kamruzzaman told reporters. “The incident took place after 10pm (local time) on Sunday but firefighters doused the blaze within a short period (and) the situation is now under full control,” he said. No casualties were reported but 66 houses were damaged and 20 burnt during the attack, the officer said.
As many as 52 suspects have been arrested while a manhunt was launched for more suspects under a “combing operation” in collaboration with other security forces, he added. As the police stood guard around the man’s home, the attackers set fire to other homes nearby, the report said. According to a report by the fire service control room, the attack scene indicated that at least 29 residential houses, two kitchens, two barns and 20 haystacks belonging to 15 different owners were torched in Pirganj’s Majhipara. It said an “unruly crowd” has been identified as the cause of fire.
The arson incident occurred amid rising communal tension over an alleged blasphemy incident at a Durga Puja venue in Cumilla which led to attacks on Hindu temples and clashes between vandals and the police in Cumilla, Chandpur, Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Bandarban, Moulvibazar, Gazipur, Chapainawabganj, Feni and other districts. Dozens of people have been arrested over the attacks, the report said. Four Muslim protesters were killed in the clashes with police in Haziganj, the worst scene of the violence, on Wednesday and Thursday, while the body of a Hindu devotee was found at a pond in nearby Begumbanj of Noakhali district.
The Bangladesh Hindu-Buddhist-Christial Unity Council said at least 70 puja pavilions and temples were attacked in the previous three days of violence. It alleges that at least four Hindu devotees have died in the attacks in Chandpur and Noakhali. Authorities have not confirmed the figures.
Meanwhile, the elite anti-crime force Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) has arrested two more men in connection with the looting and vandalism of temples and shops belonging to the Hindu minority community in Feni, about 155 kms from Dhaka. On Saturday, one person was arrested in connection with the attack which took place when the Feni Puja celebration committee and its supporters were preparing to protest against the communal violence in the country.
Approximately 40 people were injured in the violence. On Sunday, two cases were filed against 400 unnamed people.
On Monday, Dhaka University students joined hands with protesting religious groups against the attacks on the temples, puja venues and homes of the Hindu community across Bangladesh, the report said.The protesters called for the formation of a separate ministry to handle affairs related to minority groups. The communal tensions came as the minority Hindus, who constitute 9% of Bangladesh’s 160 million population, celebrated their largest religious festival Durga Puja last week. PM Sheikh Hasina has said the attacks were part of a “well-designed plot” to destabilise the country. In a separate report, the bdnews24.com, quoting the prominent rights group in Bangladesh Ain o Salish Kendra, said that as many as 3,679 attacks on the minority Hindu community took place between January 2013 and September this year.
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