Hindu house attacked and set on fire by miscreants in Thakurgaon amidst rising attacks on Hindu minorities in Bangladesh

Case ID : 30a8f5d | Location : Thakurgaon District, Bangladesh | Date of Incident : Fri, 12 June, 2026

Case ID : 30a8f5d

Thakurgaon District, Bangladesh

12 June, 2026

Hindu house attacked and set on fire by miscreants in Thakurgaon amidst rising attacks on Hindu minorities in Bangladesh

Attack not resulting in death

Attacked for Hindu identity

Case Summary

In Dhangaon village under Bakua Union No. 3 of Haripur Upazila in Thakurgaon District, Bangladesh, a Hindu family's house was attacked, looted, vandalised, and set on fire, creating panic and tension in the area. According to the victim family's complaint, a group of unidentified miscreants attacked the house of Shri Deven Chandra Roy, son of Shri Jagesh Chandra Roy, on the evening of 13 June 2026. The attackers entered the residence and looted cash and other valuables. The victim's family also stated that their cattle were taken away during the attack. The family said that the assault was premeditated and was carried out because they did not attend a local arbitration meeting. The attackers vandalised the house before setting it on fire, damaging furniture and other essential household belongings. The incident triggered widespread concern among local residents. Upon receiving information about the attack, the local administration visited the spot and assured the family that the matter would be investigated seriously and that necessary legal action would be taken. Local residents demanded a fair investigation into the incident, the swift identification and arrest of those responsible, and adequate security for the affected Hindu family. This escalation of violence against Hindus in Bangladesh has unfolded in three distinct phases: first, following the ouster of Sheikh Hasina's government in August 2024; second, after the death of Sharif Osman Bin Hadi in December 2025; and third, in the immediate aftermath of the 13th National Parliamentary Election 2026. Following the ouster of Sheikh Hasina, multiple reports documented attacks on Hindu homes, temples, and religious institutions, alongside intimidation campaigns, arson, and mob assaults targeting minority neighbourhoods. The Hinduphobia Tracker recorded 336 such incidents against the Hindu minority, underscoring the scale and persistence of anti-Hindu violence during this period. A further escalation occurred following the death of Sharif Osman Bin Hadi, a Muslim political activist and student leader known for his anti-Hindu and anti-India rhetoric. Hadi had been involved in political unrest after the fall of the Hasina government and was killed in Dhaka on 18th December 2025 during clashes. In the aftermath of his death, Hindu communities were blamed and subsequently targeted in retaliatory violence. Hindu homes were selectively set ablaze in multiple localities, forcing families to flee and leaving many displaced. The attacks appeared patterned rather than sporadic, with Muslim mobs focusing on Hindu neighbourhoods, properties, and religious symbols. Among the victims was Dipu Chandra Das, who was lynched to death and his body was set ablaze by a Muslim mob over false blasphemy allegations. The Hinduphobia Tracker documented 51 incidents of anti-Hindu violence in the period following Hadi's death alone. Reports further indicated that posters and written materials calling for the extermination of Hindus were displayed in public spaces, signalling an alarming normalisation of genocidal rhetoric. When combined with acts of arson, vandalism, assault, and targeted intimidation, these developments contributed to an environment of hostility and insecurity for the Hindu minority. The third phase of violence emerged after the 13th National Parliamentary Election 2026. Within days of the announcement of results, Hindu families in districts including Noakhali, Rangpur, Nilphamari, Sylhet, Thakurgaon, and Dinajpur reported attacks involving arson, looting, assault, and vandalism of temples and homes. In several instances, Hindu homes were selectively targeted, looted, and families were threatened with displacement.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

This case is added to the tracker under the primary category: Attack not resulting in death. The subcategory selected is: Attacked for Hindu identity. In several cases, Hindus are attacked merely for their Hindu identity without any perceived provocation. A classic example of this category of religiously motivated hate crime is a murder in 2016. Seven Islamic State terrorists were convicted for shooting a school principal in Kanpur because they were triggered by the kalava on his wrist and the tilak on his forehead. In that case, the Hindu victim had offered no provocation except for his Hindu religious identity. The motivation for the murder was purely religious, driven by religious supremacy. Such cases where Hindus are targeted merely for their religious identity are documented as hate crimes under this category. In this case, a Hindu family in Dhangaon village under Bakua Union No. 3 of Haripur Upazila in Thakurgaon District, Bangladesh, was subjected to a violent attack in which their home was looted, vandalised, and set on fire, while cash, valuables, and cattle were taken away. In the prevailing environment of anti-Hindu hostility in Bangladesh, the incident aligns with the broader pattern of insecurity, violence, and targeting experienced by vulnerable Hindu minorities. While some may argue that the available details point towards a religious motive behind the crime, the broader context of anti-Hindu hostility, persecution, and insecurity in Bangladesh remains relevant for classification. During periods marked by sustained violence, intimidation, and targeting of Hindus based on their religious identity, the Hinduphobia Tracker applies a contextual presumption that attacks on Hindu victims may be faith-targeted, even when immediate reports attribute the violence to personal, criminal, or local disputes and do not record an explicit religious motive. In such circumstances, the vulnerability of Hindu communities and the normalisation of hostility towards religious minorities can contribute to attacks occurring without perpetrators openly expressing religious intent. For the purpose of documenting the 2024 to 2026 ethnic cleansing of Hindus in Bangladesh and the subsequent persecution after the political exile of Sheikh Hasina, the death of Sharif Osman Hadi, and the 13th National Parliamentary Election 2026, the Hinduphobia Tracker records such incidents as likely religiously motivated at the point of entry. If any case is later established through credible investigation or court findings to stem from motivations other than religious hostility, it will be revised or removed from the hate crime database. The attack generated concern among local Hindus because the victims belonged to a vulnerable religious minority community. The looting of the family's property, the theft of their cattle, the vandalism of their home, and the deliberate act of setting it on fire reinforced existing fears among Hindus living in an environment already characterised by recurring incidents of anti-Hindu hostility, intimidation, and violence. The incident also created panic and tension in the locality and heightened concerns regarding the safety of Hindu families. This incident must also be viewed within Bangladesh's broader anti-Hindu environment, where Hindu minorities frequently face insecurity, intimidation, land-related conflicts, social pressure, and violence. Attacks on Hindus are often attributed to ostensibly non-religious causes such as personal disagreements, criminal activities, property disputes, or other local conflicts, thereby obscuring the possibility of underlying religious hostility. In many instances, such explanations can divert attention from the broader pattern of discrimination and violence faced by Hindu minorities. The assault on this Hindu family contributed to feelings of insecurity within the local Hindu community and reinforced the reality of vulnerability, irrespective of whether the perpetrators explicitly stated a religious motive. Given the prevailing anti-Hindu persecution environment in Bangladesh and the continuing pattern of violence affecting vulnerable Hindu minorities, this case meets the threshold for inclusion in the Hinduphobia Tracker's hate crime database. Disclaimer: For documentation purposes, although no member of the Hindu family was physically attacked or assaulted, the house that was looted, vandalised, and set on fire belonged to a Hindu man named Shri Deven Chandra Roy. Accordingly, the victim count has been recorded as one, referring to Shri Deven Chandra Roy.