Pankaj Karmakar and Nurul Amin: Attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh
The Hindu families having survived the onslaught from anti-liberation elements now wonder what protection they have in this country. As the religious minorities in some remote pockets of Chittagong and Noakhali try to come to terms with Thursday's barbaric attacks on their homesteads and temples, there is no let-up in the assaults at other places including Barisal, Bagerhat and Gazipur.
Bangladesh Hindu-Buddha-Christian Oikya Parishad has demanded the government act immediately to resist communal attacks, arrest the culprits, rehabilitate the victims and rebuild the temples. Moments after Jamaat leader Delawar Hossain Sayedee received death sentence for war crimes, his party, in some cases allegedly aided by BNP supporters, struck terror in the hearts of Hindus on Thursday.
Visiting some neighbourhoods ravaged by Jamaat and its student wing Shibir, these correspondents encountered blank looks of the community members. Passing three days under the open sky, without sleep and proper food, the families in Rajganj under Begumganj upazila of Noakhali do not know what lies ahead. “It is our sin to live in this country being Hindu; it is our sin not to flee away,” Minoti Rani Das shouted. “We had a happy family. Now I have no shed, no food, no space to cook, no furniture. Now I have only some ashes.”
This is not only Minoti's story. Around seventy six families have been living under inhumane conditions since Thursday afternoon as the bigots ran riot after the pronouncement of Sayedee verdict. While millions of compatriots across the country were celebrating following the verdict, some families were losing everything in the village. Almost all the victims and some other villagers alleged that Jamaat-Shibir-BNP men were directly involved in the attacks. At least 40 houses, six temples and several dozen shops were burnt and vandalised; valuables and furniture were looted. Police came at least one and half hours latter when it was all over.
While launching attacks, around 250 to 300 rioters were saying Sayedee was sentenced to death because of the deposition of Hindu witnesses, locals said. The number of attackers varied from spot to spot. “Sayedee got death sentence because of you. You cannot stay in this country,” Bablu Bhuiyan, whose two houses were damaged, quoted one attacker as saying. Gathered since around 10:00am, the fanatics were chanting slogans including Sayedee saheber kicchu hole, jolbe agun ghore ghore (fire will be set to each and every house, if something happens to Sayedee). Many were wearing masks... Read more:
