Several social media users have claimed that an Indian national named Sanjit Biswas was arrested in Bangladesh for vandalising idols of Hindu deities in two temples in the Faridpur district.
Indian and Bangladeshi media outlets, too, reported this based on a statement by Bangladesh Police.
What Led to the Arrest?
According to the above press statement by Faridpur Police, the authorities of Hari temple and Kali temple at Bhangabazar in Faridpur filed a written complaint at the Bhanga police station on September 15, 2024, after discovering that idols had been damaged.
Police visited the temple and noted that several idols had been desecrated in both of the temples. Notably, in the Hari Temple, one of the fingers of the idol of the Hindu deity Kartik and the neck of his peacock were twisted. The trunk and a finger of the idol of the Hindu deity Ganesha were found broken in the Kali Temple.
During the investigation, police questioned two men sleeping on a bed near the temple. One of them was recognised by locals, whereas the other one could not give satisfactory answers. He was taken to the police station. Later during the investigation, it was found that he could speak Bangla and Hindi. He then identified himself as Sanjit Biswas, 45, son of Nishikanta Biswas, from Nadia district, India. He was then arrested by the police.
Bangladeshi media outlets like Arthasuchak, Ajker Bangladesh, Daily Observer, Prabashir Digante, Euro Bangla Times, and The Daily Campus published stories claiming that an Indian had been arrested.
Bengali media outlet from India Zee 24 ghanta also reported the incident and the arrest of an Indian National.
This claim is also widely viral on social media.
Verified X (formerly Twitter) user Pinaki Bhattacharya (@PinakiTweetsBD) shared a screenshot of the news article from Desh and wrote, “… it turns out that recently, an Indian man, who is Hindu by religion and pretending to be mentally ill, was caught in Bangladesh while destroying Hindu idols…”
It’s fascinating to observe the regional politics of the Indian subcontinent, where religion is often exploited as a tool for maintaining hegemony. The ruling class, unable to address real issues, fuels religious tension to distract people with non-issues. You may have heard that… pic.twitter.com/1lAulXNjw0
— Pinaki Bhattacharya (@PinakiTweetsBD) September 17, 2024
X handle DOAM (@doamuslims) tweeted about the incident and added “India and Awami League are desperately trying to destabilise #Bangladesh by instigating communal riots between Muslims and Hindus.”
Several X users have made similar claims. Many of them have shared the police statement.
Police Revokes Earlier Statement & Says He is a Bangladeshi
In a press release issued on Tuesday, September 17, 2024, police clarified that the arrested person who had been previously identified as an Indian national was actually a Bangladeshi.
According to the revised statement, 72-year-old Nishikant Biswas, the father of Sanjit Biswas, contacted Faridpur Police after the initial press release had been issued. He stated that Sanjit was his son and they were citizens of Bangladesh. The family hails from the Najamkandi village in Kashiani Upazila of Gopalganj district in Bangladesh’s Dhaka division. Nishikant also informed the police that his son was mentally ill.
The statement also said Sanjit had gone to India for work a few years ago. After he returned, he lived with his family for some time but went missing around four years ago. He was not in contact with his family since.
Several Bangladesh media outlets reported this quoting Faridpur SP Shailen Chakma. Among them are Dhaka Tribune, Bangla news 24 , The Daily Star and others.
We found that the official Facebook page of Faridpur district police had shared a news report that states in the headline, “Man detained for vandalizing idols is a citizen of Gopalganj, not India.”
We also contacted a journalist from Dhaka who confirmed that police had revised their initial statement and that the accused was not of sound mental health. He also informed us that the father of the accused told the cops that he would come to meet his son.
To sum up, the man accused of vandalizing the Hindu deities in Bhanga upazila of Faridpur is not an Indian but a Bangladeshi citizen. A misinformed police statement triggered false social media claims and erroneous media reports. Police revoked the statement later.
Ankita Mahalanobish is an intern at Alt News.
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