The Chandranath temple, which is located in Sitakunda in the Chittagong district of Bangladesh, is yet again faced with imminent threat of encroachment and desecration.
Islamists are re-classifying the Hindu pilgrimage site of Chandranath Hill as a ‘tourist spot’ with the intention to taking over the sacred land and building mosques and prayer halls for ‘Muslim tourists.’
For the unversed, the Chandranath Hill houses one of the 51 Shakti Peethas. The Chandranath temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva, was built in the 8th century by Hindu ruler Chandrasena.
While a well-coordinated effort is underway to encroach upon Chandranath Hill since atleast December 2023, a renewed campaign was launched by one M M Saiful Islam on Saturday (16th August).
Saiful is a radical Islamic preacher and Chairman of ‘SKM Shoe Shop’. In a Facebook post on Saturday, he declared, “The construction of a masjid on top of Chandranath Hill is 90% confirmed. Alhamdulillah“
Saiful lamented that he was not allowed to offer ‘Namaz’ after he climbed to the top of the sacred Hindu land.
“In a country with 93% Muslim population, there can be two temples on the Chandranath Hill but not a single mosque. We, Muslims are being treated like tenants and are not even allowed to pray,” he said in his post.
M M Saiful Islam then met a Deobandi extremist by the name of Harun Izhar, who has previously been associated with Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh.
“Discussions are underway to build a mosque atop Sitakunda Hill…I seek the prayers of everyone to make this happen. Share this post to ensure that everyone knows about it and can pray to make our mission successful,” he said in another Facebook post.
Saiful took a pledge to build a mosque on Hindu land under any circumstances. The radical Islamic preacher declared, “I want to say this clearly. Since you did not allow me and my friend to offer Namaz, today or tomorrow, I will make sure that there is a dedicated space for Namaz on Sitakunda Hill. Inshallah.“
After his hate filled posts targeted at the Hindu community went viral on Facebook, the social media platform suspended his account. M M Saiful Islam had 52000 followers at the time of his account’s suspension.
On Sunday (17th August), he confirmed the development via his another Facebook account ‘Mufit Saiful Islam’ and went on to dehumanise the Hindu community as ‘malu/ malaun.’
Since November 2024, Islamists in Bangladesh have been running a campaign called ‘TMD’ (Total Malaun Death) wherein they are advocating the eradication of Sanatan Dharma followers from the country.
In July this year, an extremist named Mohammed Abir brutally murdered a Hindu trader named Bhajan Kumar Guha and described the victim as ‘malaun’ to justify his heinous crime.
Deobandi extremist Harun Izhar later issued a clarification in an attempt to justify his resolve to construct a mosque on a Hindu land.
He dubbed the Chandranath Hill as ‘so-called Hindu pilgrimage centre’, thereby insinuating that the status of the land is somehow disputed.
Izhar, who was previously arrested in 2021, claimed that the plan is not to build a mosque near Hindu temples but adjoining areas where Muslims go as ‘tourists.’
He said that it was within his right as a Muslim to advocate for construction of mosques and prayer sites on ‘unclaimed lands.’
The Deobandi extremist then alleged that he had helped free Hindus lands in Chittagong from encroachment to lend credence to his claim that the mosque construction is not aimed to occupy Chandranath Hill.
He further claimed that the entire controversy is a cxonspiracy of political masters of the Hindu community and ‘communal forces’ in India.
It must be mentioned that Harun Izhar is wanted in 11 cases including grenade attack in Lalkhan Bazar Madrasha, which was carried out Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh in 2013.
Islamists have been eyeing to capture Chandranath Hill since atleast 2023
Despite being a sacred pilgrimage destination, the Chandranath Hill has been transformed into a trekking spot by the Muslim community in the past couple of years.
In December 2023, an Islamist named Raihan Riad organised a ‘Beef Barbecue party’ at the Hindu pilgrimage destination. Several other Islamists expressed their support for desecrating the sacred Chandranath Hill.
Thereafter, the local Hindu community in Sitakunda went to the Hindu shrine and distributed pamphlets calling for the protection of the Chandranath Temple and thwarting attempts to defile the pilgrimage destination.
Bangladeshi extremists r chanting Allahu Akbar at the Hindu pilgrimage site Chandranath Temple.The Temple is famous among Hindus as Shakti Peeth.But the Jihadists r trying to build a mosque by occupying the land.We sought help from the Indian Embassy but got no response.@ihcdhaka pic.twitter.com/GftvirEfsY
— Voice of Bangladeshi Hindus 🇧🇩 (@VHindus71) December 21, 2023
In a video posted on YouTube, human rights activist and exiled Bangladeshi blogger Asad Noor informed that Islamists assaulted the Hindus.
He stated that the local Muslims threatened to shove the Hindu deities in the posterior of the worshippers.
When Hindus protested against it, they were attacked by the same cabal of Islamists who were armed with sharp weapons. As per reports, a total of 10 Hindus were seriously injured during the attack.
In the meantime, pictures and videos of Islamists giving ‘call to prayer’ (Azaan) on the Hindu pilgrimage site had also surfaced on social media. One extremist by the name of ‘Tigers Tamim’ was seen putting his feet up on the temple walls.
In a Facebook post, one Islamist named Mohammed Shibbir Bin Nazir was seen boasting about giving Azaan on Chandranath Hill. “Inshallah, the flag of Islam will fly here soon,” he had announced.
Another extremist Innamul Haq responded to his post, “I have been to that place twice and felt the absence of a masjid at that site (Chandranath Hill). Shirk (idolatry) is still going on in that mountain.”
They want to occupy the site of Chandranath Temple and build Babri Masjid there. All of them are students of the Hathazari Madrasa, famous for producing Wahhabi Terrorist . pic.twitter.com/0V15XIyhiH
— Voice of Bangladeshi Hindus 🇧🇩 (@VHindus71) February 4, 2024
In February 2024, several videos came to light where scores of Muslim men, wearing skull caps, were seen roaming around the Chandranath Temple in Sitakunda and raising Islamic slogans at the Hindu pilgrimage site.
While speaking about the matter to Swarajya, an official of Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council said, “Since April 2023, a few clerics started organising namaz near the mandir every Friday and we have heard there are plans to build a masjid on the hill. A false narrative is also being spread that there was a mosque atop the hill and that it was demolished by Hindus to build a mandir.”
Last year, a poster calling upon the Hindu society to preserve the Chandranath temple went viral on social media. ‘Sabdhan, Rahur kobole Chandranath Dham,” it read.
The Chandranath Temple in Chittagong is significant for the Hindu community. It follows the Nagara architectural style, which is seen in many Hindu temples across the Indian subcontinent.
This style is characterised by a curvilinear tower (shikhara) with multiple tiers, topped by an amalaka (a circular disk-like structure) and a kalasha (a finial).
Conspiracy theories such as the Chandranath temple was built by pulling down a mosque are being peddled to justify illegal takeover of the Hindu land.
It is now crystal clear that Islamists have taken up the cause of encoraching Chandranath Hill and build a mosque atop it on a mission-mode. With appeasement from the Muhammad Yunus regime, their nefarious campaign is likely to intensify in the coming days.
