“A group of miscreants wearing black masks damaged the statue of Shibbari Puja mandap in Chattogram on Panchami night (9 October). After the attack, we decided not to celebrate the puja any further and informed the police,” said Amit Kumar Hore, who witnessed the attack.
Amit Kumar, the president of Shibbari Puja Udjapon parishad, continued, “But, the police and the Puja Udjapan Committee for the first ever since the communal attacks that took place in the country forced us to continue our festival despite the damages.”
“We filed a lawsuit on that day. But according to the police log, the case was filed on 11 October,” he said at a public hearing arranged by the Gono Commission in Chattogram city on Sunday.
The Gono commission formed to investigate all communal violence in Bangladesh will submit its report to the concerned government authorities within a month.
During the hearing, the commission recorded testimonies from victims of communal violence and also received written testimonies from victims at the Chattogram Zilla Shilpakala Academy.
Another victim, Rajib Kanti from Napura of Banshkhali upazila, said that on 13 October a group of people attacked the puja mandap and destroyed its main gate, leaving 30 people injured.
He continued, “We were helpless as no one (Police) came to help. In a facebook live video, we saw a policeman standing by the miscreants when they destroyed the Puja Mandap gate.”
Barrister Tureen Afroz, member secretary of the commission and former prosecutor of the International Crimes Tribunal, said the communal attacks that occurred previously and recently are all similar and well-planned. Victims complained that law enforcement had not responded swiftly during the communal attacks.
“The report will be submitted to the government within one month,” she added.
At the public hearing, 14 people spoke on the communal attacks during the Durga Puja this year and the commission also received written statements from 56 others.
Gono Commission Chairman, retired Appellate Division Justice, Shamsuddin Chowdhury Manik, Commission Member Fazle Hossain Badsha MP, and Commission Secretariat’s Coordinator, freedom fighter Kazi Mukul, and Member Secretary, journalist-writer Shawkat Bangali, were present at the hearing.
Among others, Muktijoddha Research Trust Chairman Mahfuzur Rahman, Ekattorer Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee Chattogram president, engineer Delwar Mazumder, and CU Anthropology Department professor, Md Alauddin, have joined the panel.
Besides in Chattogram, the commission had public hearings in Brahmanbaria and Cumilla on communal violence that took place in these areas.
Later, the commission will hold a public hearing in Sunamganj and record testimonies of communal violence victims there.
