There were several incidents of communal violence at various times in Bangladesh during 2022. Following are some incidents of communal violence reported by the media:
The Secretary General of the Bangladesh National Hindu Grand Alliance, Govinda Chandra Pramanik, claimed that from 1 January to 30 June 79 people from the Hindu community were killed. [1] This included 468 incidents of house attacks, vandalism, and looting; 343 acts of arson; 93 business attacks; 2,159.36 acres of land usurped; and 419.63 acres of land attempted to be seized. Moreover, temple land grabbing in 29 cases, organized attacks in 501, attacks, vandalism and arson in temples in 56 cases, vandalism of idols in 219 cases, theft of idols in 50 cases and hurting religious sentiments in 63 incidents occurred within the country. Besides that, 57 cases of desecration of religious establishments, 60 cases of obstruction in religious ceremonies and 100 cases where people were forced to consume forbidden food in their religion were reported. [2]
Hinduism is the third largest religion in Australia consisting of more than 684,002 followers, making up 2.7% of the population as of the 2021 census. Hinduism is the fastest growing religion in Australia mostly through immigration. Hinduism is also one of the most youthful religions in Australia, with 34% and 66% of Hindus being under the age of 14 and 34 respectively.
Hinduism is the second largest religion in Bangladesh, as according to the 2022 Census of Bangladesh, approximately 13.1 million people responded that they were Hindus, constituting 7.95% out of the total population of 165.15 million people. In terms of population, Bangladesh is the third-largest Hindu populated country of the world, after the neighboring countries of India and Nepal. Hinduism is the second-largest religion in 61 out of 64 districts of Bangladesh, but there is no Hindu majority district in Bangladesh.
Anti-Hindu sentiment, sometimes also referred to as Hinduphobia, is a negative perception, sentiment or actions against the practitioners or religion of Hinduism. It exists in many contexts in many countries, often due to historical conflict. There is also scholarly debate on what constitutes Hinduphobia in the Western World.
Chitalmari is an upazila of Bagerhat District in the Khulna Division, Bangladesh.
2012 Hathazari Violence denotes a series of attacks against the minority Hindu community by the majority Muslim in Hathazari Upazila of Chittagong District in the Division of Chittagong, Bangladesh on the 9 and 10 February 2012.
2012 Fatehpur Violence refers to the attack on the minority Hindu community in the Fatehpur village under Kaliganj upazila in Satkhira District in south-western Bangladesh on the 31 March 2012.
Dakra massacre refers to the massacre of unarmed Hindu refugees at the village of Dakra, in the Bagerhat sub-division of Khulna District on 21 May 1971 by the Peace Committee members and the Razakars. The attackers were led by Rajab Ali Fakir, the chairman of the Bagerhat sub-divisional Peace Committee. It is alleged that 646 men, women and children were killed in the massacre.
In 1990, a series of attacks against the Bengali Hindus in Bangladesh occurred in late October and early November, following a rumour that the Babri mosque in Ayodhya in India had been demolished. The attacks on the Hindus began on 30 October and continued till 2 November.
On 28 February 2013, the International Crimes Tribunal sentenced Delwar Hossain Sayeedi, the vice-president of the Jamaat-e-Islami to death for war crimes committed during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War. Following the sentence, activists of Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing Islami Chhatra Shibir attacked Hindus in different parts of the country. Hindu properties were looted, Hindu houses were burnt into ashes and Hindu temples were desecrated and set on fire. While the government has held the Jamaat-e-Islami responsible for the attacks on minorities, the Jamaat-e-Islami leadership has denied any involvement. Minority leaders have protested the attacks and appealed for justice. The Supreme Court of Bangladesh has directed law enforcement to start suo motu investigation into the attacks. The US Ambassador to Bangladesh expressed concern about attacks by Jamaat on the Bengali Hindu community.
2013 Bangladesh violence refers to the political instability, increase in crime and widespread attacks of minorities and opposition activists.
On 5 January 2014, the 10th general elections were held in Bangladesh. The opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party and its ally Jamaat-e-Islami had already boycotted the elections. The buildup to the elections were marred by successive strikes and violence by the opposition parties. Victims claimed after the polls, workers and supporters of the opposition parties began attacking the minority Bengali Hindus. Accusing of looting, vandalising and setting the Hindu houses on fire in several districts across the country. Seven persons belonging to the Jamaat-e-Islami and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party were arrested in connection with the attacks. The National Human Rights Commission held the government responsible for the attacks on Hindus after the election. In India, the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party condemned the attacks on minorities.
Bangladesh has experienced terrorism in the past conducted by a number of different organisations. In the past, both ISIL and other terrorist organisations had claimed to be active in the country. However, the Bangladeshi government believes that they mainly operated through local affiliates, before being neutralised by security forces.
The 2016 Nasirnagar violence was an attack on the minority Hindu community led by radical Islamist groups in Nasirnagar Upazila, Bangladesh over an allegedly defamatory social media post by a Hindu fisherman against Islam on 30 October 2016. The attack left 19 temples and approximately 300 houses vandalized and over 100 people injured.
From 13 to 19 October 2021, Muslim mobs instigated communal violence against Hindu communities across Bangladesh during the Durga Puja festival, in response to a viral video where Quran was kept under a temple idol's feet. More than 50 temples and makeshift worship arrangements were vandalised all over Bangladesh.
Towhidi Muslim Janata is a term that refers to any group of people that forms an informal islamist organization in Bangladesh. These groups are mainly known for violent attacks on religious minorities in Bangladesh.
The non-cooperation movement, also known as the one-point movement, was a pro-democratic disinvestment movement and a mass uprising against the Awami League-led government of Bangladesh, initiated within the framework of 2024 Bangladesh quota reform movement. The sole demand of this movement was the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her cabinet. It was the final stage of the wider movement known as the Student–People's uprising or the July Revolution. Although the movement was initially limited to the goal of reforming quotas in government jobs, it snowballed into a mass anti-government uprising after the deaths of several protesters. The movement was also fueled by ongoing socio-economic and political issues, including the government's mismanagement of the national economy, rampant corruption by government officials, human rights violations, allegations of undermining the country's sovereignty by Sheikh Hasina, and increasing authoritarianism and democratic backsliding.
Following the resignation of Sheikh Hasina on August 5, 2024, attacks began on the homes, businesses, and places of worship of the Hindu community in Bangladesh. The Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council reported that from August 4 to August 20, a total of 2,010 incidents of attacks on Hindus took place across the country within this 16-day period. Among the incidents, 157 families were violently ransacked, looted, and set ablaze, their businesses razed to the ground. According to analysts, most of these attacks were not communal but a mix of political retributions or general criminal offences amid a law and order crisis in the country. 9 Hindus were killed in these attacks, of which at least 2 were confirmed as Awami League members. Meanwhile, Indian media as well as Indian social media accounts began to disseminate disinformation on the attacks; BBC Verify both confirmed some attacks hurt minorities and found that many claims about the violence were unverified, exaggerated, or misleadingly framed. Fact checkers highlighted the situation's complexity and the difficulties in accurately assessing causes of violence.
Bangladesh National Hindu Grand Alliance, is a non-political, social Hindu religious organisation based in Bangladesh. It was formed as an alliance of 23 Hindu religious organisations of Bangladesh on 17 September 2006. BJHM's main objectives are to consolidate the Hindu community, protect and serve Hinduism and to realise the religious, social, cultural and political rights of the Hindu community in Bangladesh.
2024 Bangladesh post-resignation violence took place after the resignation of Sheikh Hasina, targeting Awami League supporters, religious minorities, government and security officials. On the day of the resignation, 25 police officers were killed. According to the Daily Sun, at least 119 were killed that day. According to Prothom Alo, 1494 sculptures and monuments were vandalized across Bangladesh after the resignation of Sheikh Hasina.
In November 2024, unrest erupted at Hazari Lane in the Bangladeshi port city of Chittagong, over a Facebook post that criticised International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), who identify as a Hindu religious organisation. The content of the post referred to ISKCON as a "terrorist organisation" resulting in anger among the ISCKON members. The unrest saw attacks by a Hindu mob that included ISCKON members on a Muslim man who shared the post and an attempt to burn down his shop in the area.