In yet another attack on the Hindu community, miscreants have vandalised two idols of Shiva and Manasa alongside setting a temple on fire in Phulbari upazila of Kurigram.
The incident took place at Nawdanga village in the upazila between 3 and 4am on Tuesday, confirmed Fazlur Rahman, officer-in-charge (OC) of Phulbari police station.
Police rushed to the spot upon information in the morning, he added.
"About 40 percent of the temple structure was affected in the fire", he said, adding that members of the local Hindu community were alarmed by the incident.
"Police are investigating the incident. The miscreants will be arrested and brought under the law," he concluded.
Ratikanta Roy, the priest of the temple, said that he was woken from sleep by his neighbours who told him about the fire.
He, along with the locals, managed to douse the fire -- but did not see who did it all.
"My father and grandfather used to perform puja at this temple. After my father's death, I am also performing puja here," said a disappointed Ratikanta.
Sushil Chandra Roy, president of Nawdanga Union Puja Udjapan Parishad, and Ratan Roy, general secretary of the union unit of Hindu Bouddha Christian Oikya Parishad, said said that they were horrified by the incident.
Phulbari Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Suman Das, when contacted earlier in the day, said he was not aware of the matter.
However, he pleged to take necessary measures in this regard.
Attacks on religious minorities in Muslim-majority Bangladesh are increasingly taking place, and many of them happened after rumours or fake posts spread through social media.
According to a report by legal rights group Ain O Salish Kendra, 3,679 attacks were carried out on the Hindu community in Bangladesh between January 2013 and September 2021.
