On Friday (29th November) noon, a violent Muslim mob attacked Hindu minorities and vandalised 3 temples in Patharghata in Chittagong district of Bangladesh.
According to a report by BDNews24, the Hindu religious sites that were targeted by the Muslims included the Shantaneshwari Matri Temple, the Shoni Temple, and Shantaneshwari Kalibari Temple.
The attack took place immediately after the conclusion of Jumma Namaz. Muslims thronged the Harish Chandra Munsef Lane in Patharghata and shouted anti-Hindu slogans. They also hurled abuses at ISKCON.
A massive rally of Islamists had attacked Hindus in the #Patharghata region of Chattagram
— Vladimir Adityanath (@VladAdiReturns) November 29, 2024
The Shantanushwari Kaali Baari, the Durga Mandir in Brickfield road & the Jagatbandhu Ashram were attacked
Army has been deployed in Chattagram. pic.twitter.com/5p0MBVLGSU
Soon after, they began pelting stones and bricks at the Hindu temples, damaging the premises of Shoni Mandir and the gates of the other two Hindu religious sites.
The development was confirmed by the Kotwali Police Station chief Abdul Karim. The situation has now been brought under control.
The incident comes at the backdrop of the arrest and subsequent hounding of former ISKCON priest Chinmoy Krishna Das Prabhu.
Hindu leader narrates ordeal
While speaking about the matter, local Hindu leader Tapan Das informed BDNews24, “A procession of hundreds arrived after the Juma prayers. They started shouting anti-Hindu and anti-ISKCON slogans.”
He added, “The attackers began hitting the main gate of the Shantaneshwari Temple, and threw brickbats. At the time, they vandalised the Shoni Temple and also attacked the Kali Temple. Several nearby shops were also targeted,” he added.
“We did not obstruct the attackers. When the situation worsened, we called the army, who arrived quickly and helped restore order. All the temple gates were closed before noon. The miscreants arrived unprovoked and carried out the attack,” Das further emphasised.
Recent attack on Hindus in Bangladesh
On 25th September, a radical Muslim man named Yasin Mia vandalised the idols of Goddess Durga and other Hindu deities in Gouripur town in the Mymensingh district of Bangladesh.
Around the same time, an Islamic extremist outfit named ‘Insaf Keemkari Chhatra-Janta’ staged a march against Hindus utilising a playground for Puja in Dhaka’s Sector 13.
On 11th October, a petrol bomb was hurled at a Durga Puja mandap in the Tanti Bazar neighbourhood in Dhaka city of Bangladesh.
