In Rajshahi, an โaggrieved crowdโ of radical Islamists or the Touhidi Janata vandalised a Khanka Sharif in Panishail Chandrapukur village of Baragachi in Poba Upazila on Friday.
After Zohr prayers, more than 150 Muslims left the mosque and went to the Khanka Sharif and vandalised and looted it.
The Khanka Sharif is named โHaq Baba Gausul Azam Maiz Bhandari Gausiya Pak Darbar Sharif.โ Pir Azizur Rahman Bhandari, a resident of the area, built this shrine near his house about 15 years ago.
Eid-e-Miladunnabi is celebrated in this shrine every year. This time, there was a three-day event from Thursday to Saturday. Both male and female artists started coming and performing Bhandari and Murshidi songs.
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Due to this event, there was already tension about it in the area. After Friday prayers, Poba police station OC Monirul Islam was there with two police cars due to fear of an attack. However, the police were onlookers during the attack.
A video of the attack shows that about 150 worshippers attacked Khanka Sharif. They were hitting the shrine complex surrounded by a tin fence. The sound of it could be heard from a distance.
Pir Azizur Rahman Bhandari said that he would not file any complaint with the police station. He said: โThere were police, DB, and the OC himself. They do not protect them there, who should I complain to?โ
He said: โI will not complain. I practice humanism; everyone comes to me. I forgive everyone. May Allah forgive them, too. They are happy, whatever.โ
Since the fall of the Awami League government on August 5 last year, over 100 shrines have come under attack by the Islamist, identifying them as Touhidi Janata. It is a common platform of radical Islamist parties like Jamaat-e-Islami, Islami Andolan Bangladesh, Hefazat-e-Islam, Bangladesh Khelafat-e-Majlish and militant groups like Hizb ut-Tahrir and Jamaโatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB).
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Even though the government publicly warned against mob attacks on shrines, some of its advisers and the chief adviserโs representative have defended mobs as pressure groups.
On Friday, Pir Azizur Rahman did not leave his house during the attack.
He said: โSome people in the area have been obstructing our program for several days. They went to Poba police station last night to stop the program. I do not know what they discussed with the police. After the Friday prayers, they gathered and attacked Khanka Sharif. The devotees did not let me leave my house. So, they targeted my house and pelted bricks and stones.โ
He claimed that local BNP leader and former Union Parishad (UP) member Golam Mostafa led the attack and was accompanied by Jamaat-e-Islami workers. They were shouting โNaraye Takbir, Allahu Akbarโ on a loudspeaker as they came to carry out the attack.
Asked about it, Golam Mostafa said: โI was called to the police station last night. That is why I went. But I was not there today when the attack took place. I heard later that such an incident had happened.โ
Poba police station OC Monirul Islam said: โLast night, many people came to the police station regarding the shrine. I asked everyone to remain calm. Even then, the police went because there was a little anxiety. The police were a little far away. Thatโs when the excited crowd did this. There were so many people that the few police had nothing to do. Now, if any complaint is received, we will see.โ
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