Home ›› 24 Oct 2021 ›› Front
A Cumilla court on Saturday remanded Iqbal Hossain, the prime suspect of desecrating the holy Quran at Nanuar Dighir Par puja mandap in the city, and three others in seven-day police custody.
The Rapid Action Battalion also arrested the prime suspect of burning down the homes and shops of the Hindus in Pirgonj of Rangpur Saikat Mandal and his accomplice Rabiul Islam at Tongi of Gazipur. The duo admitted their guilt during the primary investigation, RAB said.
Cumilla Senior Judicial Magistrate Mithila Zahan Nipa granted seven-day remand for Iqbal and three others rejecting investigating officer Mafizul Islam’s prayer for a 10-day remand for custodial interrogation and further investigation in the case.
The other three are – Ikram Hossain who called 999 to inform about tracing the Quran in the mandap, Humayun Ahmed and Faisal Ahmed, assistants at the shrine of Shah Abdullah Gazipuri in the city. Iqbal took the Quran from the mosque of the shrine and left it on the lap of the idol Hanuman at the mandap.
Cumilla’s Additional Superintendent of Police M Tanvir Ahmed said Iqbal told the investigators that he had thrown the mace of Hanuman into a pond after taking it from the mandap.
Tanvir told The Business Post that they would interrogate Iqbal on the involvement of others in the episode and the motive behind his actions.
The RAB on the day arrested the mastermind of the arson attacks on Hindu homes in Pirganj of Rangpur Saikat Mandal, 24, and his accomplice Robiul Islam, 36, at Tongi in Gazipur.
RAB legal and media wing director Khandaker Al Moin at a press briefing on Saturday said Saikat incited the locals by spreading rumours through various comments and false posts on Facebook and his associate Rabiul Islam mobilised the locals with provocative remarks using the public address system of a mosque that triggered the attack on the night of October 17.
At least 68 houses in Majhipara of Pirganj were attacked, burnt, vandalised and looted. More than 50 people have been arrested in three cases filed by the police.
Moin said one Ujjwal at Barakarimpur in Pirganj had a personal conflict with Paritosh Sarkar and in its sequel, Ujjal made derogatory remarks about Paritosh’s religion and Paritosh also retaliated in the same way on Facebook’s communication app Messenger.
And Ujjwal made the comment public on his own Facebook profile which was shared by Saikat, said Moin.
Moin said Saikat had taken the rivalry between Paritosh and Ujjwal as a scope to increase the number of followers on Facebook and began posting provocative content on sectarian sensitivity.
The other arrested Rabiul is the muezzin of a local mosque.
The RAB official said they had no specific information on Saikat’s political affiliation
Violence marred the festivity of Durga Puja across the country on October 13 after a copy of found Quran was found in the mandap in Nanuar Dighi of Cumilla.
The violence spread to different districts including Chandpur, Noakhali and Chattogram and Rangpur.
