Hindu man's home and temple burnt down by Muslims in Bangladesh

Case ID : f66476f | Location : Jhalokati, Barisal District, Bangladesh | Date of Incident : Wed, 19 February, 2025

Case ID : f66476f

Jhalokati, Barisal District, Bangladesh

19 February, 2025

Hindu man's home and temple burnt down by Muslims in Bangladesh

Attack on Hindu religious representations

Attack on Temples

Attack not resulting in death

Attacked for Hindu identity

Case Summary

In Jhalkathi, Barisal, in Bangladesh, a Hindu man named Nironjon Mistri’s house and temple were burnt down by Muslims when he and his family were sleeping. A video showing the house and the temple of the Hindu man burnt down to ashes was shared on social media highlighting the persecution minority Hindus are facing in the Islamic country, especially since the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League government on August 5, 2024. Taking advantage of the political turmoil, Islamists have unleashed a wave of terror and violence against the Hindu community. The Islamist mobs have attacked Hindu homes, burned them to the ground, and abducted women in a horrific descent into anarchy. Several temples have been destroyed in various parts of the Islamic country in a major crackdown on Hindus. Further, the arrest of Hindu priests has exacerbated the situation, with Hindu minorities protesting across Bangladesh and seeking justice.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

This case has been added to the tracker under two prime categories. The first is- Attack not resulting in death. Under this, the sub-category 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. 7 ISIS terrorists were convicted for shooting a school principal in Kanpur because they got ‘triggered’ seeing the Kalava on his wrist and tilak that he had put. In this, 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 would be documented as a hate crime under this category. The second category relevant here is- Attack on Hindu religious representations, and within this, the sub-category selected is- Attack on 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 removal of Sheikh Hasina from power in Bangladesh on August 5, 2024, escalated the persecution and marginalisation of the Hindu minority in the predominantly Islamic nation, intensifying what can be described as a silent genocide. Since her ouster, Islamists have carried out unchecked atrocities against Hindus, including physical violence, the destruction of temples and religious symbols, and the systematic displacement of Hindus from their ancestral lands. Hundreds of attacks on Hindu temples, shops, and businesses have been recorded following Sheikh Hasina's removal as Prime Minister. Many Hindus have been brutally murdered or injured in these assaults. Amid this, this report indicates that Islamists burnt down the house and the temple of a Hindu man, while his entire family was asleep. This was not just a random attack but a targeted attack against the Hindu family, as evidenced by multiple factors. Firstly, the house and the temple of a Hindu man were exclusively targeted, suggesting a deliberate selection rather than random criminal activity. If it were merely a case of arson, one would expect a more indiscriminate approach, affecting families of different religious backgrounds. However, the focus on the Hindu home indicates a pattern of religious targeting. Secondly, the miscreants not only burnt the home but also targeted the temple. This is a significant indicator of religiously motivated intent. Temples are sacred spaces for worship. The fact that the temple was burnt along with the home suggests that the purpose behind this was to intimidate, harass, or provoke the Hindu family. Taken together, these factors indicate that the incident was a targeted act of religious intimidation and persecution aimed at Hindus. Such attacks are, in fact, a form of symbolic aggression against the Hindu community that stems from an innate hatred for Hinduism. It was done primarily out of animosity for Hindus and their faith, making it a kind of religious harassment worthy of being listed in the tracker. This fits a broader pattern of anti-Hindu violence seen in various parts of Bangladesh, where Hindu minorities have been subjected to orchestrated attacks to create fear and displacement, especially since the ousting of Sheikh Hasina on August 5, 2024.