Bangladesh Police identify man behind Quran incident which triggered violence

Members of Iskcon participate in a peaceful protest against the recent violence against Hindus in Bangladesh.

The Bangladesh Police said that the man in question is Iqbal Hossain. He was identified form the CCTV footage which shows him taking the Quran from a local mosque and walking into a Durga Puja venue in Comilla.

The Bangladesh Police have identified the man responsible for inciting the violence, which led to attacks on Durga puja pandals in Comilla and other places. Comilla's Superintendent of Police Farooq Ahmed told Dhaka Tribune that the man's name is Iqbal Hossain from Sujanagar area of the city.

Ahmed said the 35-year-old placed the Holy Quran at one of the Durga Puja pandals on October 13, which triggered the violence in which three people were killed.

Dhaka Tribune said in its report that the police identified Hossain after analysing video footages of the CCTV cameras installed at the Durga Puja venues. He has not yet been arrested.

In the footage, Hossain is seen taking the Quran from a local mosque and walking into a Durga Puja venue. He was later seen walking away with the club of Lord Hanuman.

Ahmed said that the police will hold a briefing on Thursday where more details about Hossain will be shared.

Attacks on Hindu temples have intensified in Bangladesh since last Wednesday after a post surfaced on social media showing the Quran kept at a Durga Puja pandal. Late on Sunday, a mob damaged 66 houses and set on fire at least 20 homes of Hindus.

The police said over 450 suspected temple attackers have been arrested so far in different parts of the country. Forty one of them have been arrested for the Comilla incident and four of them are Hossain's associates.

On Tuesday, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina instructed her home minister to initiate immediate action against those who incited violence using religion as she asked the people not to trust anything on social media without fact-checking.

Hindus make up some 10 per cent of the Muslim-majority Bangladesh's 169 million population.

Source: Hindustan Times