3 Killed in Riots in Bangladesh after Hindu Temples, Durga Puja Pandals Vandalised
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Oct 14: At least three people were killed in communal riots that broke out in various parts of Bangladesh in which Hindu temples and several Durga Puja pandals were vandalized by the unruly mobs following reports of blasphemy.
Media reports from Dhaka said several pandals were vandalised by some unidentified miscreants during Durga Puja celebrations, prompting the government to deploy paramilitary force in 22 districts after three people were killed and many others injured in riots.
The official Bangladesh television news said the riots broke out after allegations of blasphemy in a local temple in Cumilla, about 100 kms from Dhaka, became the centre of a social media storm on Wednesday. As clashes broke out, the administration and the police tried to bring the situation under control, it said.
The report said social media carried reports of alleged desecration of Quran in Cumilla, a city in the Chittagong Division, by placing it near the feet of goddess Durga’s idol at a puja pandal. Media reports said the Jamaat-e-Islami (JEI) might be behind the attacks with an intention of embarrassing the Sheikh Hasina government.
The attacks on pandals mainly took place in Noakhali, Chandpur, Cox’s Bazaar, areas around Chattogram, Chapainawabganj, Pabna, Moulvibazara and Kurigram. No disturbance was reported in Dhaka, Brahmanbaria, Jashore and other major cities. Incidents of vandalism have also been reported from Hindu temples in Chandpur’s Hajiganj, Chattogram’s Banshkhali and Cox’s Bazar’s Pekua, the report said.
Media reports said at one stage, the situation went out of control and riots started spreading to a number of Durga Puja venues. The local administration and the police came under attack as they tried to maintain law and order, it said. Later, the elite anti-crime and anti-terrorism unit of the Bangladesh Police Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and paramilitary force Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) were deployed to bring the situation under control, the report said.
The religious affairs ministry issued an emergency notice, urging members of the public not to take the law into their hands as it reiterated calls to maintain communal harmony and peace, it said. The government deployed the BGB in 22 districts after multiple attacks on Hindu temples during Durga Puja celebrations, the report said. “BGB personnel have been deployed to ensure security during Durga Puja at the request of deputy commissioners and under instructions from the home ministry,” BGB director of operations Lieutenant colonel Faizur Rahman said.
In Kolkata, the BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, who is the leader of the opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, urged the prime minister Narendra Modi to take urgent steps to provide relief to Hindus residing in Bangladesh in view of attacks on Durga Puja pandals and various temples in the neighbouring country. In a letter to Modi, Adhikari said the notorious vandals are habituated to targeting the ‘Sanatani’ minority community in Bangladesh.
“This time the religious fanatics took to the streets to vandalize several Durga Puja pandals and various temples also. Presently the condition of Sanatani People living in Bangladesh is very miserable,” he wrote, referring to the term often used to describe Hindu movements.
Adhikari highlighted that many Bangladeshi Hindus, who have crossed over to West Bengal to escape the inhuman atrocities of the past, are making “frantic calls” to stand in support of the victims. “Hence I heartily request you please take necessary and urgent steps at your disposal as early as possible to provide relief to the Sanatani People of Bangladesh,” wrote Adhikari.
