Homes of Hindus burnt over rumors of anti-muslim Facebook post

Several Hindu family's houses were vandalized and later set on fire in Bangladesh over rumors of an alleged anti-muslim Facebook post.

Several Hindu family's houses were vandalized and later set on fire in Bangladesh over rumors of an alleged anti-muslim Facebook post. A group of radical Islamists attacked several homes of Hindu families on Nov. 1, 2020, at Korbanpur village under Muradnagar Upazila in the Comilla district of Bangladesh.

The incident took place after a Bangladeshi man, who lives in France, allegedly praised President Emmanuel Macron for taking actions against inhumane ideologies after a teacher in Paris was beheaded in Paris for showing caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad published in Charlie Hebdo magazine. The headmaster of a kindergarten school in Purbo Dhour embraced Macron's action in the post comment. The report said the rumors about the Facebook post spread, and tension mounted in the area.

The Press Information Department, in a statement, urged the citizens not to heed rumors. The Bangladesh government's statement was issued after the death of a man by a mob in Lalmonirhat's Burimari and the attack on the homes of Hindus in Cumilla's Muradnagar as both incidents fuelled by allegations of slander against Islam. The police arrested two people on charges of hurting the religious sentiments on Nov. 1, 2020.