Guwahati: Unidentified criminals attacked Hindu deity idols at 14 temples in Bangladesh’s northwest in a coordinated sequence of attacks.
“Unidentified people carried out the attacks under the cover of darkness, vandalising idols in 14 temples in three unions (lowest local government tier),” said Bidyanath Barman, a Hindu community leader said.
He asserted that the neighbourhood has a reputation for having outstanding interfaith cooperation because “no such horrible act took transpired here in the past.”
“The (majority) Muslim community does not have any dispute with us (Hindus)… we just cannot understand who could be these culprits,” he said.
According to the police, the unheard-of attacks occurred in a number of localities between Saturday night and Sunday morning.
They claimed vandals damaged 14 idols in a temple in the Sahbajpur Nathpara area of Charol union, four idols in the Collegepara area of Paria union, and nine idols in the Sindurpindi area of the Dhantala union.
“It clearly appears to be a case of an orchestrated attack to disrupt the peaceful situation of the country,” Thakurgaon’s police chief Jahangir Hossain told reporters at one of the temple sites.
The manhunt has been started to find the criminals responsible for the attack, he added.
“I assure you they will have to face stern legal actions,” he added.
“This (attack) is the manifestation of a conspiracy against peace and communal harmony…this is a serious crime and the perpetrators will face the music,” Thakurgaon’s deputy commissioner or administrative chief Mahbubur Rahman said.