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Bangladesh: 4 arrested for vandalising Hindu temple, arson at homes
Bangladesh has acknowledged 88 incidents of communal violence targeting Hindu minorities between August and October.
Bangladesh police on Saturday arrested four people for vandalising a Hindu temple and arson of houses and shops in Sunamganj district's Doarabazar area earlier this month, news agency PTI reported.
Arrested individuals are Alim Hossain, 19, Sultan Ahmed Raju, 20, Imran Hossain, 31, and Shajahan Hossain, 20. In addition to those arrested, police have also filed a case against 12 named persons and 150-170 unidentified ones related to the incident. Police said they are conducting an in-depth probe to identify more people concerned.
How vandalism unfolded?
“On December 3, a Facebook post by Akash Das, a resident of the Sunamganj district, sparked tensions in the district. Even though he deleted the post, screenshots spread widely, leading to violence in the area,” PTI cited state-run news agency Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS).
Although Das deleted the post within minutes, its screenshots were widely shared among the locals, leading to tensions in the area. He was detained by police on the same day and transferred to the Sadar Police Station for “safety reasons”.
Enraged locals began attacking the Loknath Temple and went on to vandalise homes and shops belonging to members of the Hindu community in the locality.
The situation was brought under control with the intervention of the Superintendent of Police (SP), the District Commissioner (DC), and personnel from the army and police, the report said.
Bilateral relations under strain
Attacks allegedly targeting the members of Hindu community and recent arrest of Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das have led to strained bilateral relations between India and Bangladesh after former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's ouster from power.
India's foreign secretary Vikram Misri during his visit to Bangladesh raised “regrettable incidents” of attacks on minorities and conveyed India's concerns regarding their safety and security.
Dhaka raised the “misrepresentation” by sections of the Indian media about the situation, but acknowledged the incidents a day later.
On Tuesday, Bangladesh acknowledged 88 incidents of communal violence against minorities and said that 70 people have been arrested in those incidents. Muhammad Yunus’ press secretary Shafiqul Alam also said that a total of 88 cases has been registered from August 5 to October 22.
The Centre for Democracy, Pluralism and Human Rights (CDPHR) in New Delhi said that there were 190 reported cases of looting, 32 homes were set on fire, 16 temples were desecrated and two incidents of sexual violence.
