Recent Atrocities Against Minorities in Bangladesh

Report from Bangladesh on November 30, 2001

A special report of HRCBM Relief Worker from Ground Zero, as it happening.

In continuation of my previous report on communal persecution and torture on Bangladeshi Hindu minorities I append below the nature of persecution at Mirersarai, Chittagong visited by us on 30th of November,2001 :-

Mirersarai police station :
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Das para

Das para is village where 52 Hindu family lived within Mirersarai police station. On the 2nd of October and onward the terrorists with a view to occupy the ancestral properties of Hindus started attack on those families one after another. The terrorists attacked all the inmates of the houses,looted all the belongings including utensils.It is reported that the terrorists attacked at 12.30 hours on 2nd of October with deadly weapons upon the Hindu inmates of the houses and assaulted 32 persons including children of 12 years. The injured persons were also admitted into Mirersarai local hospital where I visited first on 15th of October and took some valuable statements from the victims in the Hospital and the Nurse on duty and also took interview with the local Member of Parliament Mr. M.A.Zinnah, alongwith the local Sub-inspector of police of Mirersarai police station who for the first time denied the allegation and later on admitted the incident. Mr. M.A. Zinna assured me that no incident like this would happen in future.
I told him that during I992 at the period of Begum Khaleda Zia there was a
serious communal torture on the minorities after the demolition of Babri mosque in India, but Mr. Zinnah could not give a satisfactory reply.

The most unfortunate incident of Mirersarai is that one Sunil Sadhu, aged
about 32 years was killed by some terrorists and this Sadhu was also devoted to Puja and other religious ceremonies. His sudden death made the Hindu community disheartened and rendered in great anxieties and worries. When we were entering in Das Para, a pathetic scene was awaiting for us, the old widow mother of Sunil Sadhu(52) started crying like child and she became mad loosing his only son.
The sister of Sunil Sadhu became senseless after constant crying and this
situation compelled us to cry along with the distressed family of Sunil Sadhu. We saw some police/Ansars have been deployed to observe the present situation in that area.

We distributed some winter clothes,shari, lungi,biscuits and some money to
the 120 victims of the locality on behalf of HRCBM and became happy to get
those relief materials.  On that day a meeting was also organized on behalf of Bangladesh Puja Ujjapan Parishad, Chittagong Committee. The spot interview in our video tape will speak a volume of oppression on the Hindu minorities in Mirersarai. The miserable condition of Hiudus of Das para know no bound. We could not even take our food on that day as the crying of old mother of Sadhu reminded us whole day journey unforgettable.

We talked with some women victims who although were gang raped could not
disclose the incident of rape due to social restriction and thought that their husband may abandon them for ever. We also took interview in a solitary room one women told me that she has been raped but she will not disclose it to anybody. She did not identify the culprits responsible for the offence.

We, on behalf of HRCBM  decided to talk with the Home Minister of Bangladesh requesting him to help us in visiting some other affected areas where still a great number of Hindu minorities are on constant threat by the Islamic fundamentalists or they are about to leave the country for fear of life. We could give the victims some extent of consolation that HRCBM has taken a very affective role in rehabilitating the minority victims of Bangladesh.

If anybody of us interested to rehabilitate only the mother of Sunil Sadhu(52) it would be a great help for rest of her life. And if you are interested to help her please inform me immediately as there is none to look after her and her daughter at present.

We have decided to visit Bagerhat immediately and let you know the latest
development.