Hindu residents threatened to force exodus, temple desecrated in Bangladesh
Thakurgaon District, Bangladesh 
27 June, 2025
Case Summary
In Thakurgaon district of Rangpur Division, Bangladesh, a violent mob led by a known Muslim gangster named Shahidul Islam launched an organised attack targeting the local Hindu community. The incident centred on a land dispute, wherein Shahidul Islam sought to seize the property of a Hindu resident named Bijoy Chandra Roy. According to eyewitness accounts and statements from victims, the assailants carried out deliberate vandalism of a Hindu temple, desecrated idols, including that of Goddess Manasa, and set fire to multiple Hindu homes. The attackers, armed with weapons, issued direct threats of further violence and openly declared their intention to forcibly remove Hindu families from the area. They planted a red flag outside Roy’s residence as a territorial marker and warned that they would return to intensify their aggression. Hindu women from the locality recounted that the mob warned of a renewed assault and the complete capture of Hindu-owned land. Footage of the aftermath, including the broken idols and destruction, was shared by the organisation ‘Bangladesh Agniveer, Rangpur Division’, confirming the extent of damage inflicted. Victims stated that they were told in plain terms that they would not be allowed to reside in the village any longer.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
The first primary category in this case is: Attack not resulting in death. The sub-category under this category is: Attacked to induce migration from non-Hindu-dominated area. There have been cases where the Hindus living in an area, often with a majority dwelling belonging to non-Hindus or those harbouring animosity towards the Hindu faith, the Hindu residents experience threats and violence. The violence is employed with the aim of making the Hindus leave the area and relocate, so the area could be turned into an exclusive ghetto for adherents of the non-Hindu faith or those who harbor animosity towards the Hindu faith. In several cases, the aim of exodus is explicit. However, in several cases, the demand for exodus of Hindu residents is not explicit, however, violence by non-Hindu residents leaves the Hindu residents no option but to leave the area, thereby, turning the area into an exclusive ghetto of non-Hindu residents. In such cases, there are instances violence against the Hindu residents explicitly. For example, in the Hauz Qazi case of 2019, the Muslim residents claimed that mob violence against the Hindu residents had been triggered by a parking dispute. However, the violence did turn religious with a temple being desecrated and was directed specifically against the Hindu residents. The Hindu residents of the area were clear that the violence was religiously motivated and one of the motives was to affect an exodus of the Hindu residents. In such cases, even though the perpetrators have not explicitly expressed the aim of affecting exodus, the given circumstances and violence and precedent point to the intention of exodus and therefore would be categorized under this sub-category. Such crimes are religiously motivated and therefore are hate crimes. The second primary category in this case is: Attack on Hindu religious representations. Within this, the first sub-category under this category is: Attack on Hindu temples. In Hinduism, a temple is the abode of the Deity. The Deity in the Temple is consecrated, thereby, making it a real, breathing entity. Hindus believe that not just the Deity but the temple premises itself are sacred to Hindus since Hindus hold the faith that the entire Temple space is an amalgamation of the divine energy of the deity. Given the central significance of Temples in Hindu Dharma, any attack against a Hindu Temple or its peripheral premises is an attack on the faith itself and is born out of animosity towards the faith, of which, the Temple is a central tenet. Any manner of attack against a Temple and/or its premises would therefore be considered a religiously motivated hate crime. The other sub-category selected is: Desecration of Hindu religious symbol. Icons and symbols or a religious representation of a spiritual ideal are widely revered in Hinduism. Iconography is of vital significance in the Hindu milieu. It helps connect people’s spiritual beliefs with the real world. Iconography within the Hindu faith takes several shapes and forms. Murtis are of most significance to Hindus, to which daily rituals, prayers and offerings are done. Besides the murtis, there are several other symbols which have deep significance in the Hindu faith – the Om and Swastika for example. Since these Hindu religious symbols hold paramount importance in Hinduism, any desecration of symbols, icons, murtis, religious representations and manifestations, is driven by animosity towards the faith itself which manifests itself through these murtis, icons and symbols. Therefore, any desecration of these Hindu religious symbols and representations is considered religiously motivated hate crimes under this category. This case is a clear example of a religiously motivated hate crime rooted in Islamic supremacist ideology. Although the conflict may have originated over a land dispute, the deliberate targeting of a Hindu temple, desecration of idols, and arson of Hindu homes indicates that this was not a mere property disagreement, but a coordinated communal assault aimed at terrorising the local Hindu population. In Hinduism, temples are sacred spaces of worship, and the deities are revered with deep respect. Acts of temple vandalism and deliberate idol desecration, as demonstrated in this case, are seen as deeply offensive and sacrilegious. Despite being aware of this fact, the use of threats, destruction of sacred religious icons like the idol of Goddess Manasa, and the planting of a red flag outside the Hindu victim’s home were symbolic assertions of territorial control, effectively declaring the area as off-limits to Hindus. This act mirrors jihadi patterns of conquest, where symbols are used to mark religious and political domination. Eyewitnesses confirmed that the mob openly threatened to drive out Hindu families and warned of future violence if they did not vacate the area, making it unmistakably clear that the objective was a Hindu exodus. Such actions are not only criminal but also reflect an ideological motive to eliminate the Hindu presence and alter the demography of the region. This is not an isolated case but part of a broader pattern of targeted violence against Hindus in Bangladesh, that has only increased since the violent ouster of of Sheikh Hasina on 5th August 2024, with at least 205 attacks on Hindu temples, shops, and businesses reported within just three days of Dhaka’s fall. Reports have exposed how Muslim students forced around 60 Hindu teachers, professors, and government officials to resign. Exiled Bangladeshi activist Asad Noor has also revealed that the minority Hindu community is now being coerced into joining ‘Jamaat-e-Islami’. Hindu religious events have been repeatedly targeted. On 6th September, a procession carrying Lord Ganesha’s idol was attacked in Chittagong. Ahead of Durga Puja, multiple incidents of idol vandalism occurred, including attacks in Mymensingh, Pabna, Rajshahi, Kishoreganj, and Dhaka. On 29th November, a violent Muslim mob attacked three temples in Patharghata, Chittagong, immediately after Jumma Namaz. The crackdown on Hindu voices has also escalated. On 30th November, Hindu journalist Munni Saha was arrested in Dhaka. ISKCON leader Chinmoy Krishna Das Prabhu and his aides have been targeted, while attempts to ban ISKCON and suppress Hindu protests through sedition charges highlight systematic persecution under Muhammad Yunus’s interim government.
Case Status
Unknown
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 5 to 10
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
