New Delhi: Over two days, vandals targeted three Hindu temples in Bangladesh, causing significant damage to eight idols in the Mymensingh and Dinajpur districts, as reported by local media. Authorities have arrested a 27-year-old suspect related to one of the incidents.
According to police, Abul Khayer, officer-in-charge of Haluaghat Police Station, the attacks began early Friday when miscreants vandalized two idols at the Bonderpara Temple in the Shakuai union of Haluaghat. The violence marks a continuation of assaults on the minority Hindu community in the area. In Mymensingh, three idols across two temples were also destroyed during the early hours of Thursday and Friday, with another idol at the Polashkanda Kali Temple damaged the previous day.
This incident follows an earlier attack on November 29, when a mob vandalized three temples in Chattogram while chanting slogans. This unrest was spurred by the arrest of Chinmoy Krishna Das, a Hindu monk and ex-ISKCON Bangladesh member, on sedition charges after he was detained at Dhaka’s Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, leading to widespread protests.
Local authorities confirmed the vandalism, reporting broken gates and significant destruction at the temples. Tapan Das, a member of the Santaneshwar Matri Temple management committee, recounted the attackers chanting anti-Hindu and anti-ISKCON slogans as they approached in large numbers.
These violent incidents have intensified following the arrest of Chinmoy Krishna Das, with rising tensions in Chattogram as a backdrop. This unrest occurs against a backdrop of increasingly strained diplomatic relations between India and Bangladesh following the recent ascendance of an interim government led by Muhammad Yunus after Sheikh Hasina’s ousting on August 5 amid student-led protests.
Observers are expressing growing concerns regarding the safety of minority communities in Bangladesh, urging authorities to act quickly and decisively to ensure justice and prevent further violence.