Prelude

Hazari Goli (Lane) of Chattogram is a narrow lane with only 2 entry and exit points. Hindus form over 90% of the population in this region. Hazari Goli is a business hub with more than 1000 gold processing, jewellery and medicine shops. Local businessmen and market owners like Chandan Ghoshal (name changed) and senior employees working in local factories like Badol’s Gold Factory and Jewel Dhar’s Gold Factory say that Hazari Goli has an average daily trade of over 300 crore Bangladeshi Taka (BDT) by conservative estimates. Owners and workers of several jewellery stores like Hazari Gold Fashion and Royal Gold also confirm the daily average transaction value mentioned above.  The neighbouring localities of Teribajaar and Biponi Bitan are also dominated by Hindus.

Hazari Goli and its neighbouring regions

The two entry and exit points of Hazari Goli have robust gates which can be locked in case of emergency. Several local residents like Soubhik Mondol (name changed) and local social workers like Soumita Lahiri (name changed) say that there were coordinated attacks by a mob of 30-40 Islamists on Hazari Goli after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government. The local Hindus had expected attacks and were able to repel the rioters who were armed with various types of bladed weapons, wickets and sticks. The two gates were kept locked during non-business hours and arrangements were made by local market complex owners to promptly lock the gates after the attacks on August 05.

Facebook Post by Osman Ali and the coordinated campaign against ISKCON

Over 95% of the shops, factories and businesses in Hazari Goli are owned by Hindus. Local businessmen confirm that at least 90% of the people employed there are Hindus. Osman Ali, a member of the radical Islamist group Jamat-e-Islami and the owner of a shop named “Molla Stores” had made a derogatory Facebook post against ISKCON and Sanatana Dharma, terming the monks of ISKCON as “Hindu Terrorists” and “agents of India” [1].

The monks of ISKCON like Shree Chinmay Prabhu are playing an important role in encouraging and promoting the “8-point demands” raised by the persecuted minority Hindu population of Bangladesh. The major demands were to

1. Create a minority commission to ensure the welfare of the Hindu, Buddhist, Christian and other minority communities.
2. Provide 5 days of holiday during Durga Puja, the biggest festival of indigenous Hindus.
3. Digitalise the Pali and Sanskrit education boards.
4. Allocate prayer rooms in the halls and hostels of educational institutes and dormitories similar to what is given to the Muslims. [2]

Shree Charu Chandra Das Brahmachari, the General Secretary of ISKCON Bangladesh and Palash Kanti Dey, the head of a prominent Hindu organisation operating in Chattogram say that the “8-point-demands” have nothing to do with politics. They say that these demands are being raised to ensure the basic human rights and dignity of life only.

Radical Islamist organisations like Hefazat-e-Islam, Jamat-e-Islami and cadres of the banned fundamentalist group Hizb ut-Tahrir are campaigning for banning ISKCON in Bangladesh. Using fake news circulated across social media like Facebook books falsely depicting devotees of ISKCON desecrating the Bangladesh National Flag [3], they are calling the devotees and monks of ISKCON as “R&AW Agents” (Intelligence Agency of Bharat). Senior journalists like Mahmudur Rahman, the editor of “Amar Desh”, had termed ISKCON as a “terrorist organisation”.

Shree Charu Chandra Das Brahmachari issued a written statement on November 3, denouncing all such claims as “controversial and baseless”. He demanded that Mahmudur Rehman apologise to the people of Bangladesh within the next 7 days, hinting at taking strict measures, including possible legal action against the journalist if he fails to apologise within 7 days [3].

A case of sedition was filed by BNP party worker Mohammad Firoz Khan against Shree Chinmay Prabhu and 18 other Hindus on October 30 [4]. The BNP party has expelled him for filing this case without party approval [5]. Advocate and General Secretary of Bangladesh Sanatan Party Sumon Kumar Roy says that under the existing legal framework, a case of sedition can only be filed with the approval of the ruling Government.

Residents of Chattogram, leaders of local Hindu Organisations and social workers like Ratan Kumar (name changed) and Satish Chandra (name changed) say that ISKCON is being targeted by radical Islamists because:

1. The Chattogram unit of ISKCON under Shree Chinmay Prabhu was very effective in propagating Hindu Dharma.
2. ISKCON and other Hindu organisations have managed to reduce the rate of conversions to Islam by at least 500% since 2017. The online campaign launched by ISKCON for debunking the fake narratives of Maulanas and spreading awareness about Dharma among the Hindu youth was extremely successful.
3. The monks of ISKCON have been travelling to the remote locations of Bangladesh, helping poor families irrespective of religion. Radical Islamists allege that this aid and awareness is helping the financially challenged and isolated Hindu families to resist conversion through incentives and “womb-jihad”.

Protests by Hindus at Hazari Goli and the temporary breakdown of law & order on November 5

10-12 local Hindus had confronted Osman Ali in front of his shop at around 3.30 in the afternoon, demanding a public apology for his Facebook post. There was a long argument involving a lot of shouting and word began to spread about his Facebook Post. Chandan Ghoshal claims that around 70 people had gathered around Molla Store by 4.30 p.m. and they began protesting with slogans demanding justice for Hindus and respect for Hindu saints and monks by 5’o clock.

Local residents like Suprakash (name changed) and Sukhvilas (name changed) claim that the local people had not yet been able to get over the attempted mob lynching of a 22-year-old Hindu boy Patha Biswas Pintu from nearby Patiya on September 30 [6]. Many activists like Satish Chandra (name changed) claim that he was framed and his Facebook account was hacked [7]. Many of the protestors were also recalling the assault on Utshob Mondol and the attack on the house of a Hindu college student Sohag Biswas of Dhauradanga village on September 29 [8]. Utshob was manipulated on social media and the allegations of blasphemy against Sohag lack any concrete evidence.

A majority of the local eyewitnesses interviewed for the purpose of this report say that the assembled Hindus had demanded a written apology from Osman Ali. His brother Musa Molla had posted a vulgar comment on social media about Devi Durga and her puja in 2021. He was forced to issue a public apology for his conduct.

One of the written testimonies collected from local Hindus mentioning the abuse of Devi Durga by his brother Musa Molla in 2021

The Bangladesh Police claims that the supporters of ISKCON had attacked Osman Ali with the intention of murdering him. Images of the chargesheet produced by the Bangladesh Police in front of the judiciary under S. I. Mizanur Rehman Chaudhary shall be provided in the Appendix for reference.

However, the Hindus demanded an apology from Osman Ali and did not simply attack him with murderous intentions as implied in the charge sheet. Osman Ali gave a written confession to the local Hindus, accepting that he had hurt their religious sentiments. He also mentions that fellow shop owners, goldworkers and authorities of the Miyan Shopping Complex (in which his shop “Molla Stores” is located) provided protection to him.

The written confession by Oswan Ali

The policemen arrested Osman Ali and he was given protective equipment like a helmet. At least 250 Hindus were chanting slogans outside the Miyan Shopping Complex by 6 p.m., prompting the on-duty policemen to request extra backup.

Local Hindus confirm that no members of ISKCON were present among the protestors and ISKCON had nothing to do with the spontaneous protest. Local Hindus and victims like Chandan Ghoshal (name changed), Vikas Kumar (name changed), Chandranath De (name changed), Kanti Biswas (name changed) say that the police had initially assured the protestors that they would ask for the maximum possible punishment for Osman Ali from the Judiciary via loudspeakers but their behaviour changed after the arrival of a backup police force at around 6.30 p.m.

Iqbal Hossain had placed a Quran on the lap of an idol of Hanuman Ji, leading to attacks on the lives, livelihood and places of worship of Hindus throughout Bangladesh. Islamist mobs vandalised and desecrated at least 343 temples and 1650 houses belonging to Hindus. At least 14 Hindus were murdered by fundamentalist Muslims [9].

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Bangladesh failed to submit a chargesheet against Iqbal Hossain for over 9 months [10]. He was sentenced to 16 months in jail for instigating anti-Hindu violence in 2023 but was released for having served his sentence in advance [11]. The local JM Sen Durga Puja Mandap was also attacked while Hindu women were inside performing the ritual of “varan”. Such incidents and the lack of decisive action against the perpetrators had led to a deep sense of distrust among the local Hindus, including the protestors.

Local Hindus mention that the policemen were behaving arrogantly after the arrival of a backup force of around 10-15 policemen. Such behaviour only angered the protesting Hindus, who started shouting slogans questioning the credibility of the policemen. The Police chargesheet claims that a heavily armed mob of 400-500 “ISKCON supporters” and “Chattra League (Student Wing of the Bangladesh Awami Party) members” had entered the Miyan Shopping Complex and surrounded them. Local Hindus and Hindu Organisations say that none of the protestors were armed. The protestors demanded that Osman Ali be temporarily handed over to them for public humiliation.

A small detachment of Bangladesh Army had arrived by 7.00 p.m. and the combined force of security personnel attempted to make their way out by manhandling the protestors. Some of the protestors and market complex authorities locked both the gates and attempts by people like Chandan Ghoshal (name changed) to calm down the protestors were unsuccessful.

Hindu protestors like Chandan Ghoshal (name changed), Tuhin Dey (name changed), Arnab Dey (name changed), Aritra Dey (name changed), Biswarup Biswas (name changed) and many others say that the responsible police officer had ordered a lathi-charge on the unarmed Hindu protestors who had entered the Miyan Shopping Complex.

The crowd of 300 protestors waiting outside were triggered by the sight of unarmed Hindus being attacked. They refused to allow the security personnel to leave with Osman Ali and they were stuck inside Hazari Goli for over 30 minutes. A few protestors hurled pieces of brickbats at Osman Ali and many of the protestors were attempting to snatch him from the security personnel as a result scuffles broke out. An emergency call for help was sent to the army by the security personnel who were trapped in the middle of Hazari Goli with nowhere to go.

 60-80 army men arrived at around 8 p.m. to clear the crowd of irate Hindu protestors. They raised their rifles and fired towards the sky for several minutes before using tear gas to disperse the protestors. Law and order was restored by 8.30 p.m. and the security personnel stuck inside with Osman Ali were able to get out.

The Bangladesh Police accuses the Hindu protestors of hurling acid at the security personnel, seriously wounding 11 security personnel. It also mentions that 2 policemen were severely injured by the pieces of brickbats hurled by protesting Hindus. Local Hindus claim that the second allegation is completely baseless.

Local Hindus and leaders of prominent Hindu Organisations like Palash Kanti Dey say that acid is not an easily transportable commodity and none of the protestors in the narrow lane were carrying acid. The acid was thrown by unknown miscreants from 4 or 5 storey buildings. No CCTV footage exists of the acid attacks. They argue that hurling large quantities of acid from such heights in the middle of a close-quarter scuffle would have injured many of the protestors too. They claim that reports of the acid attack are exaggerated with many inaccuracies. They think that miscreants having nothing to do with the Hindu protestors had hurled acid and some droplets of the hurled acid may have landed on the security personnel. They claim that the reported injuries mentioned in the chargesheet are “misleading”.

The twin attacks on Hazari Goli

At least 400 policemen, army and BDR personnel had entered Hazari Lane after blocking both the exits. Many Hindus from the nearby Hindu-dominated areas like Teribajaar had reached Hazari Goli to enquire about the situation. Many people who needed to buy medicines urgently were also there. A mob of around 600 Muslims had assembled outside Hazari Goli but they were unable to enter due to the presence of the army. They were mostly motivated by social media posts instigating local Muslims to “teach the malauns (cursed by Allah) a lesson”.

The security personnel started to indiscriminately attack anyone they could see without any warning. Local Hindus like Chandan Ghoshal (name changed) claim that the security personnel had initially failed to notice the presence of a large number of CCTV cameras but soon began smashing every CCTV camera that they could see. Several videos of security personnel smashing CCTV cameras went viral on social media on November 5 [12].

 Hundreds of innocent Hindus who had arrived to purchase medicines or to enquire about the situation were hunted down and brutally beaten up. Aritra Dey (name changed) describes the sight of a young Hindu boy being beaten with sticks by five military personnel near the Equity Market as “traumatising”. The boy was beaten up until he lay motionless in the middle of the lane. He was then dragged along the road for several metres before being dumped in a corner [13]. An aged heart patient who came to buy medicines after some of the shops had reopened was beaten up by security personnel [14].

The security personnel began chasing people who ran into neighbouring houses in desperation. Local Hindus claim that the security personnel took advantage of this panicked retreat as a pretext to enter houses and beat up any men they could find, often dragging them out into the lane from their homes. Videos of Bangladeshi Army members threatening to break down the doors of a Hindu family on the count of three have gone viral [15]. Several local people claim that the security personnel had threatened to shoot them [16].

Apprentice goldsmiths form a significant portion of these victims. They are mostly teenagers with an average age of around 16 years who stay inside the gold shops at night, learning their craft during non-business hours. Security personnel entered these shops by breaking open the locks and vandalising everything in sight. A 15-year old apprentice Shujon (name changed), who claims to be lucky to be alive, says that they completely ignored his warnings about the presence of hazardous chemicals like acid while vandalising the gold shop where he works. He says:

“Dada, I do not understand what you wish to achieve by writing this report. They will ignore everything. People will forget after a few days. If they get to know that I talked to a Bharatiya, me and my family would simply disappear. They beat me up but I am happy that I did not suffer a broken arm or leg like many others. They kept calling me “Malaun” while beating me up”.

Local Hindus, market owners and multiple Hindu Organisations of Bangladesh confirm that at least 100 Hindus were severely wounded during the two attacks on Hazari Goli that night, who had to be hastily brought to hospital by the army to prevent loss of life and limb. More than another 100 Hindus who were non-locals and had nothing to do with the protests were left without any medical care.

Local Hindus like Abhik Dey (name changed) say that no healthcare professionals were allowed to enter Hazari Goli till November 10. Many of these injured victims were teenage apprentice goldsmiths. Local people had to physically carry them to hospitals without any support from the authorities.   

Injuries suffered by the Hindus of Hazari Goli during the 2 attacks

Local Hindus accuse the security personnel of indiscriminately attacking them for over two hours. Hindus who were not severely injured came out to help the remaining injured people who had not received any medical care yet. The security personnel returned around 3.30 a.m. and began to attack the local Hindus like Arnab Dey (name changed), Abhik Dey (name changed) and Biswarup Biswas (name changed) who were carrying the injured Hindus from the previous attack to nearby hospitals.

Most of the already injured Hindus were beaten up again. At least 300 Hindus were detained without proper documentation and sent to nearby Police Stations or Army Cantonments. Local Hindus like Chandan Ghoshal (name changed) claim at least 200 shops were vandalised during these attacks. 

The security personnel sealed each and every shop of Hazari Goli, claiming to prevent further acid attacks. The local Hindus were not allowed to continue their livelihood for the next three days. Chandan Ghoshal (name changed) says that he has suffered a loss of 10-12 lakh Bangladeshi Taka (BDT) during these three days. Other local residents and market complex owners say the Hindus of Hazari Goli have suffered financial losses of 800 crore BDT as a result of the vandalism and enforced closure of trade.

Aftermath

100 out of the 300 Hindus detained were released within 24 hours. Tuhin Dey (name changed) who came to visit his relative working as an apprentice goldsmith during his dinner time was arrested and taken to a local police station. He was brutally beaten for several hours and suffered a broken elbow and several bruised bones from the prolonged torture. He refuses to name the police personnel who tortured him.

Security Personnel had arrested the husband of Mona Das, a cancer patient with a 9 -year old child, who went to Hazari Goli to get her medication. She and her child were forced to starve for 2 days before local Hindus could find and assist them. The authorities have neither released her husband nor assisted her in any way to continue her treatment to date [17]. Several local Hindus have posted videos of them describing how security personnel would beat them for 20-30 minutes and then give them a “break” of 3-4 hours before the next cycle of torture [18] [19].

80 out of the remaining 200 Hindus were produced before the court while the rest of the Hindus are being released in small groups. Many of them accuse the army personnel and policemen of

1. Demanding 2-6 lakh BDT from their families for their release [20].
2. Attempting to get fake statements out of them blaming ISKCON for anti-national activities using torture.
3. Trying to get false confessions of them being R&AW agents through torture.
4. Trying to force them to convert to Islam.

The above details are confirmed by CPL Corporal M. Hossain (name changed) of the Bangladesh Army.

Radical Islamists had organised a protest rally under the banner of Hefajot-e-Islam on November 11, demanding a ban against ISKCON in the neighbouring Andarkilla region of Chattogram. Slogans like “Catch each and every one of the ISKCON devotees and slaughter them”, “burn down every single temple owned by ISKCON” and “Pakistan Zindabad” were repeatedly heard during the rally [21] [22].  Local Hindus like Arnab Dey (name changed) and Chandan Ghoshal (name changed) say that several employees of the First Security and Islami Bank of Andrkilla were threatening Hindus, warning them of dire consequences like burning down the entire Hazari Goli.

Nobody was allowed to go near Hazari Goli without a special permit till November 08 and multiple checkpoints were set up along the two possible entry/ exit ways. Local Hindus were body-searched and thoroughly questioned every time they intended to go out for any purpose.

Conclusion

The threat of attack continues to loom over the Hindu residents of Hazari Goli. A glance at Bangladeshi social media platforms shows several viral posts from radical Islamists urging Muslims to teach the Hindus a lesson. The security personnel had been attempting to protect the Hindus since August 5 in Chattogram with reasonable consistency. Now with them indulging in vandalism and launching attacks on fellow civilians without an investigation, who do the Hindus of Bangladesh turn to?

Annexure (the Chargesheet)

 

References

1. https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/bangladesh-security-forces-attack-hindus-chittagong-clashes-social-media-post-iskcon-video-viral-2629424-2024-11-07

2. https://en.somoynews.tv/news/2024-09-14/PtA23Vz2

3. https://ddnews.gov.in/en/bangladesh-iskcon-asks-mahmudur-rahman-to-seek-apology-in-7-days/#:~:text=Sree%20Charu%20Chandra%20Das%20Brahmachari,calls%20for%20bans%20on%20ISKCON.

4. https://dailyinqilab.com/bangladesh/news/699359

5.  https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/nation/363837/bnp-leader-expelled-for-fling-case-against-iskcon

6. https://www.opindia.com/2024/10/hindu-boy-arrested-blasphemy-muslim-mob-attacks-police-station-army-vehicle-patiya-chittagong-bangladesh/

7.https://x.com/avroneel80/status/1840709121517269312?t=iU6UkubnwvyKuXEy5yQSCg&s=19

8.  https://x.com/avroneel80/status/1840119936561398131?t=zN3-6xW6tBTYtsysciJFqQ&s=19

9. https://www.hinduamerican.org/projects/human-rights-report/bangladesh-2021

10.https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/291082/comilla-puja-mandap-violence-cases-in-limbo-no

11.  https://www.opindia.com/2023/03/iqbal-hossain-sentenced-quran-anti-hindu-violence-bangladesh/

12.  https://x.com/GBHAlliance/status/1853989273743007905?t=C2tCtPWf-9aQRQ8gz0auWQ&s=19

13.  https://x.com/SBHPage/status/1853872774391214142?t=R9leFDoS-9a_A52j2LqxTQ&s=19

14.https://x.com/VHindus71/status/1853861753345761354?t=I678kBYaCB90hDF8AG1ipw&s=19

15.https://x.com/AshwiniSahaya/status/1853887091320750203?t=bIzkdJfFyI6Et2u701RbRQ&s=19

16.  https://x.com/taslimanasreen/status/1854195143898693796?t=a-MQlWklpehx5QOCvDCl9A&s=19

17.  https://x.com/hindu8789/status/1855978794277798050?t=ykqtKDskfr2nA-2LnLJboA&s=19

18.https://x.com/HinduVoice_in/status/1854728420011172048?t=Q5pBw1NbMtk94GqUUMD7kw&s=19

19.https://x.com/GBHAlliance/status/1856372291183227249?t=3M9TjLmoOhFxHFw2KsSg7w&s=19

20.https://x.com/VHindus71/status/1855618665825092057?t=RVuX6wFZYGJbs5lHaK3FMw&s=19

21.https://x.com/deepscribble/status/1854898475692941484?t=qeoO41PpexhtE1iDKEPWaw&s=19

22.https://x.com/hindupost/status/1854879129935462768?t=vJMRdSBU_wReVO3Yw9wiMQ&s=19