Dhaka: The prime accused behind the arson attack on Hindu houses at Boro Karimpur village in Bangladesh’s Pirganj, and his associate have confessed to their role in the violence.
In his statement, Saikat Mandal, 24, who has been arrested, confessed in the court that he was involved in the attack and made post on social media to incite violence.
Mandal – an expelled local Bangladesh Chhatra League leader, and his associate and Imam of a mosque Md Robiul Islam, 36, were named as key accused in the case.
As many as 70 families were affected by the attack.
The police said the attack in Pirganj of Rangpur took place due to a rumor that a Hindu man had posted religiously offensive content on Facebook.
Most of the victims were still traumatized and in constant fear of another attack.
“The attackers belonged to the local units of the Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing Islami Chhatra Shibir,” Union Parishad Chairman Md. Sadequl Islam said.
Ashraful Alam, director of the National Human Rights Commission’s investigation team, recently visited the location from Dhaka. He had told reporters that he is concerned about the victims.
“Almost all of the families, who lost everything in the violence, are living in extreme fear. The security gap that has been created is not going away. They said they were worried that they would not be able to do business in the future in this area,” Alam said.