The tensions between Hindus and Muslims have gone on forever, and there is no point in asking when these riots will end. Several news agencies even reported it as ‘Fresh’ communal violence as though it is a habit—nothing new in people killing each other based on their communities.
For several years, politicians and other beneficiaries have used the communities by using divide and rule policies.
Now, there is no saying as to what might pit these two religions against each other. Sometimes, the problems are severe, but they are often small things like jewellery ads promoting communal harmony and exaggerated as much to form a law called “Love Jihad.”
An account of what happened in Bangladesh
Religious violence erupted on October 15 after an image of a Quran (the holy book of Muslims) placed on the knee of a Hindu deity; circulated on social media.
It was an alleged blasphemy incident at a Durga Puja pavilion in cumilla, bordering Chandpur and about 100 km from Dhaka. It leads to the deployment of paramilitary forces in more than half of the administrative district.
Bangladesh police have detained around 300 suspects after three men were killed, 100 people were injured, and 200 were attacked.
2 temples were vandalized that triggered the mass, about 10 Hindu temples and shrines were attacked. By Saturday, six men were killed.
The police in Cumilla shot teargas and fired on the crowds.
This mayhem took place during the Durga celebrations. The Hindus in Bangladesh will certainly not forget the Durga pooja 2021.
The vandalism that followed
On October 14, an ISKCON temple was vandalized, and a mob killed a devotee in an attempt to stir up communal tensions across the country
Hindu temples in Chandpur’s Hajiganj, Chattogram’s Banskhali, and Cox’s Bazar’s Pekua were vandalized, as reported by bdnews24.com.
On Saturday, nearly 10,000 enraged people gathered outside the main mosque in the capital.
Bangladeshi media reports on Sunday said at least 20 homes belonging to Hindus were torched in Rangpur city’s Pirganj neighborhood.
How Bangladesh dealt with the attack
Bangladeshis even deployed troops to take control of the situation.
Ministry of external affairs spokesperson, Arindam Bagchi, said that the Durga puja had received protection from Dhaks’s law and order enforcement agencies, and Bangladesh ‘promptly’ dealt with the people or organizations that tried to disturb the ceremonial proceedings.
As precautionary measures, Dhaka has strengthened police presence in several districts like Chittagong, Narsingdi, Comilla, and Munshiganj, known for historic Durga puja celebrations.
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina promised she would bring justice to the culprits behind the violence, saying anyone involved in the attacks on Hindu temples and Durga Puja venues will not be spared.
“We expect that nothing happens there (in India) which could influence any situation in Bangladesh, affecting our Hindu community here…,” she said.
Hasina also reassured representatives of the Hindu community — who form about 10% of Bangladesh’s 169 million population — that they were taking all precautions to ensure there was no violence during the immersion of idols of Goddess Durga.
She also said she hopes that India would take steps against any reaction at home, resulting in fallout in Bangladesh.
Hindutva organizations response to it
On Monday, members of several Hindutva organizations staged protests across the Barak Valley in Assam against the communal violence in Bangladesh, reported the Hindustan Times.
Members of the Hindu right-wing organizations like Vishwa Hindu Parishad and several other Hindu organizations, including Bharat Sevasram Sangha, Bajrang Dal, Sankar Math, Gauriya Math, the women’s wing of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, and Rashtra Sevika Samiti, called for boycotting the goods imported from Bangladesh and burned their national flag.
Several protestors attempted to cross the border of Karimganj, which shares the border with Bangladesh, to go to the neighboring country.
The border security forces stopped the protestors, who said they would protect the Hindus in Bangladesh. The forces held their guards not to let anyone cross borders.
Ranjan Das, a former Karimganj MLA, and Bharatiya Janata Party leader, said he had written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, requesting him to send a “strong message” to Bangladesh that Hindus do not face harassment.
Ranjan das, the former Karimganj MLA and Bhartiya Janata party leader said that “If India cuts all the trade agreements with Bangladesh, as we did with Pakistan, the country will be bound to starve.”
India is the largest importer of Bangladesh’s food products
BJP district chief Subrata Bhattacharjee warned the attackers to boycott every product coming from Bangladesh.
The Hindu organization leader Vishwa Hindu Parishad remarked that Bangladesh had forgotten that India saved them from Pakistan and gave them the identity of an independent nation.
He also said that he was surprised to see the people dancing in the district during the immersion of deity Durga’s idols, which were allegedly vandalized in Bangladesh.
He added that it is time we started thinking of ourselves as global Hindus and stopped pretending as seculars.
The protestors shouted “Jai Shri Ram” and demanded punishment for the attackers, reported Barak Bulletin, a local newspaper.
