A mob has damaged 66 houses and set on fire at least 20 homes of Hindus in Bangladesh over an alleged blasphemous social media post amidst protests by the minority community against temple vandalism incidents during the Durga Puja celebrations last week, authorities said on Monday.
The arson attack by the mob of over a hundred people happened late on Sunday on a village in Rangpur district’s Pirganj upazila, about 255 kms from here, the bdnews24.com reported.
The police rushed to a colony of fishermen as tension mounted over a rumour that a young Hindu man from the village had “dishonoured religion” in a Facebook post, the report quoted district’s superintendent of police Mohammad Qamruzzaman as saying.
The police said that no casualties have been reported in the attack. As many as 52 suspects have been arrested while a manhunt was launched for more suspects under a “combing operation” in collaboration with other security forces, he added.
As the police stood guard around the man’s home, the attackers set fire to other homes nearby, the report said.
The Fire Service Control Room said that their report from the scene indicates that 29 residential houses, two kitchens, two barns and 20 haystacks belonging to 15 different owners were torched in Pirganj’s Majhipara, it said, adding that an ‘unruly crowd’ has been identified as the cause of fire.
The fire service received a report of the fire at 8.45pm and finally put it out by 4.10am, the report said.
The arson incident occurred amid rising communal tension over an alleged blasphemy incident at a Durga Puja venue in Cumilla which led to attacks on Hindu temples and clashes between vandals and the police in Cumilla, Chandpur, Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Bandarban, Moulvibazar, Gazipur, Chapainawabganj, Feni and other districts.
Dozens of people have been arrested over the attacks and the spread of communal hatred on social media, the report said.
