How Islamists wreaked havoc on Bangladeshi Hindus during the Ram Janmabhoomi movement

Despite an academic background in science, Mr Dutta found his true calling in journalism. Fascinated by the Indian politics, he is currently working as an Assistant with Opindia. His key areas of expertise are – debunking fake news, decluttering complex political issues, calling out religious extremism without a shred of political correctness, etc.

An estimated 2,400 Hindu women were gang raped, and 3,500 temples were destroyed by frenzied Muslim mobs in Bangladesh. An estimated 700 Hindus were killed in the carnage during the Ram Janmabhoomi movement.

The long-standing Ram Janmabhoomi movement has reached its finale as the consecration ceremony of the majestic Shreeram Temple in Ayodhya was completed on 22^nd January 2024. This marks the end of 496 years of struggle to reclaim the birthplace of Prabhu Shreeram, where once stood a disputed structure. Despite all attempts to deny Hindus the right to their Ram Janmabhoomi, the movement ushered into a new dawn for Hindu civilisation.

The construction of Shreeram Temple in Ayodhya is the culmination of sacrifices made by the Hindu community, not just in India but across the globe.

In the neighbouring country of Bangladesh, the minority Hindu community was subjected to inhuman atrocities after the disputed structure in Ayodhya was razed to the ground on 6^th December 1992.

In its 2004 report, the ‘Minorities at Risk Project (MRP)’ chronicled the attacks on the minority Hindu community in Bangladesh by radical Islamists.

October 1990

An indefinite curfew was imposed in Dhaka by the Bangladeshi Government after Islamists attempted to set fire to Hindu temples. The planned arson attack was however thwarted by the Police.

This was done to ‘avenge’ the storming of a disputed structure by karsevaks at the Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya. Although they could not harm the Hindu temples in Dhaka, Islamists managed to attack the press and seize their cameras.

Later, Muslim mobs unleashed mayhem in Chittagong and destroyed several homes, shops and the temples of the Hindu community.

According to the Human Rights Congress for Bangladesh Minorities (HRCBM), Islamists attacked Hindu shops and the Gouri Math Temple, located south of the ‘Bangha Bhavan’ on 30^th October 1990.

“All the belongings of Hindu minorities were burning to ashes barely a mile away from Ershad’s Conference. The atrocities happened in front of Police and local administration, but there was no effort from law enforcing agencies to prevent the violence”, the report noted.

December 1992

According to MRP, Islamists burnt down Hindu shops and temples across Bangladesh following the historic event of 6^th December 1992.

A strong mob of 5,000 Muslim men, armed with bamboo sticks and rods, tried to storm a cricket match played between India and Bangladesh at the Dhaka National Stadium.

Their attempts were foiled by the Police, who fired tear gas and rubber bullets at the frenzied mob. The 2004 MRP report stated, “At least 10 people have died, many Hindu women have been raped, and hundreds of Hindu homes and temples have been destroyed”.

As per a report of United Press International, a mob of 1,000 Muslim men barged into the Hindu Shiva Temple in Thatari Bazar district of Dhaka and razed it to the ground.

Islamists also attacked a Hindu temple in Narinda District and gravely injured an 88-year-old Hindu priest in a bomb attack. The Muslim mob also tried to break into the Dhakeswari Mandir in Dhaka.

They also looted shops of the Hindus and smashed the cars of the minority community with sticks and iron bars.

Division	Domiciles	Commercial Establishments	Temples and Religious establishments	No. of gang raped women	No. of wounded (later died)
Barishal	13,000	500	1,500	2,000	200
Chittagong	9,000	1,000	700	100	200
Dhaka	5,000	500	600	200	200
Rajshashi	500	300	300	50	50
Khujna	500	200	400	50	50
Total	28,000	2,500	3,500	2,400	700

Destruction

According to the HRCBM, the programme was executed by the radical Islamist outfit Jamat-i-Islami which was an alliance partner of the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).

The riots were not spontaneous but rather well-planned. An estimated 2,400 Hindu women were gang raped, and 3,500 temples and religious establishments were destroyed by frenzied Muslim mobs.

Over 28,000 homes and 2,500 commercial buildings of the Hindu community were razed. An estimated 700 Hindus were killed in the carnage. The numbers were conservative as acknowledged by several prominent politicians at that time.

“During the atrocities of 1992 and 1990, minority women and children have become the victims of brutal crimes. In those atrocities women were not only gang raped brutally, they were forced to walk naked in the streets”, the HRCBM report emphasised.

“Rape victims also included minors starting with age 5. In some villages, no women aged 5 to age 70 escaped the merciless attack of vicious Islamic fundamentalists”, it concluded.

In his paper ‘Bangladesh at the Crossroads : Religion and Politics’, Patha S Ghosh notes the mayhem unleashed by Muslim mobs against the Hindu community on the night of 6th December 1992.

“Riots in Dhaka, on the day the mosque was destroyed, injured about 70 people, including two journalists, and damaged a number of shops belonging to Hindus. The Indian Airlines office was attacked and the Indian Cultural Centre burned. Several Hindu temples were attacked and one near the Nawabazar Police outpost was set on fire”, it read. Islamists attacked the offices of the Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) and the Nirmul Committee. They also gutted the largest Hindu rath (Chariot) in Bangladesh.

Hindus, fearful for their lives, were bound by circumstances to avoid participating in the 300-year-old Shiva Chaturdashi fair in Chittagong.

October 1993

Hindus in Bangladesh decided to forego the annual Durga Puja celebrations in light of the atrocities committed against them by the majority Muslim community. “The Hindus have demanded that damaged and destroyed temples be repaired and that an inquiry be held into the attack on a Hindu religious procession in Dhaka in August”, the MRP report emphasised.

Conclusion

The completion of the Ram Temple is a moment of triumph for the Hindu community. Ayodhya has witnessed the finalisation of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement with the consecration ceremony of the Ram Mandir on 22^nd January 2024.

(Courtesy : www.opindia.com/2024/01/)

The atrocities happened in front of Police, but there was no effort from law enforcing agencies to prevent the violence !