Brahmanbaria ,October 30 (Dhaka Tribune): An mob of hundreds of people armed with locally-made weapons demolished at least 10 temples to the ground in addition to vandalizing hundreds of houses of the Hindu community at Brahminbaria‘s Nasirnagar upazila on Sunday afternoon.
The mob fury followed a Facebook post making fun of the Masjid al-Haram, the holy site of Muslims.
More than 100 people were injured in the attacks while six people were detained, according to reports.
Police took control over around 2:00 pm. A raid was underway to nab the culprits.
Several hundred locals staged a demonstration at Sarail-Nasirnagar-Lakhai highway on Friday demanding the hanging of one Rasraj Das who allegedly was behind the FB post.
The temples destroyed include Duttobari, Nomosomudropara, Jagannath, Ghoshpara Gouro.
Brahmanbaria Superintendent of Police (SP) Mizanur Rahman told the Dhaka Tribune that around 150 to 200 people launched the attacks and vandalized at least seven to eight idols of five temples in the area.
Mizanur said a vested interest carried out the attacks to tarnish the government’s image.
Blaming Jamaat-Shibir men for the attack, he said: “Those who were behind the attack will be arrested as soon as possible. Already we have detained six persons in this connection.”
Nasirnagar Hindu-Buddhist-Christian Oikya Parishad President Adesh Dev, however, claimed to a news portal that 15 temples had been looted and destroyed.
“Several devotees were injured in the communal attack and police did not interfere in the looting.”
