Fresh attack on Bbaria Hindus
The house of a Hindu family in Nasirnagar upazila of Brahmanbaria district has been attacked by unknown people despite the presence of vigilant teams. The incident yesterday was the second arson attack on the Hindu community after a massive onslaught on them and their houses and temples on October 30 over an alleged Facekbook post demeaning the Holy Kaaba, the most sacred place in Islam.
Repeated attacks on Hindus in Nasirnagar upazila have pushed the community into a state of fear despite the deployment of police and local vigilant teams to prevent such raids. Sundays arson attack was directed at the thatched house of a fisherman, Chhuttu Lal Das, in the fisherman village in Pachhimpara in Nasirnagar. The attack, around 5am, gutted fishing nets worth of over Tk. 1 lakh. Locals said that a patrolling vigilant team had passed the area just about 10 minutes before the incident. The fire attack had been launched when the members of the team were on their way home, they said. Officer-in-charge of Nasirnagar police station, Abu Jafar,
said, A vigilant team of seven to eight were patrolling the area at night. How the incident could have taken place despite such precaution is not yet known! He said no one had been arrested so far. Assistant superintendent of police of Brahmanbaria (Sadar Circle), Abdul Karim, visited the spot after the incident. Earlier, on November 4, at least five Hindu houses had been torched after the October 30 attack on the community. After the incidents, security was beefed up in Nasirnagar to prevent further attacks. Law enforcers were deployed at strategic points to thwart such attacks, while locals formed vigilant teams.
But despite the initiatives, attacks on Hindus have not stopped, leaving the community feeling insecure. Police have so far arrested 78 people in two cases filed after the November 30 attack, though cases were filed against around 1,200 unknown persons. After the November 30 attack, the district administration, police administration, and police headquarters formed separate investigation teams to probe the incident. Even the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) formed a probe team to identify the reasons of the attack on the Hindu community. Different human rights organisations visited the place and demanded a judicial investigation to bring the perpetrators to justice. Despite these measures, however, the apprehensions of the community in Nasirnagar persist because of such repeated attacks.
