Three temples vandalised in Bangladesh

DHAKA: Three more temples were vandalised in Bangladesh’s Chittagong on Friday during what police described as a “confrontation between two groups”. The attacks on the Shantaneshwari Matri, Shani and Shantaneshwari Kalibari shrines along Harish Chandra Munsef Lane in Chittagong’s Patharghata marked a continuation of violence targeting minorities, especially Hindus, since the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League govt was ousted in Aug.
Custodians of the three temples that came under attack said that several hundred slogan-shouting people hurled bricks at the structures. The Shani temple bore the brunt. The gates to the other two shrines were damaged, they said. Police passed off the damage as “minimal”, blaming the two groups “throwing brickbats at each other” for the law-and-order breach. There was no official word till late evening on what sparked the clash.