March 2003
I. March 1, 2003. Maheshkhali island, Coxbazar district (in southeastern Bangladesh bordering the Bay of Bengal and the country of Myanmar). The local Hindu Shiva Chaturdashi festival taking place Adinath temple was attacked by Islamic reactionaries, who looted and destroyed the festival.
II. March 3, 2003. Kishoreganj district (northwest of the capital city of Dhaka). A false case has been filed against the general secretary of the Kishoreganj district press club, Dilip Kumar Saha, a member of the minority Hindu community. All of the members of the local press corps have protested against the arrest
III. March 5, 2003. Alampur village, Kushtia district (in western Bangladesh bordering the Indian state of West Bengal). Sikha Rani (age 46), a widow from the minority Hindu community, was murdered by a group of Islamic fundamentalists in her own home. The killers wanted to seize Sikha Rani’s properties.
IV. March 6, 2003. Shambhupur village, Patnitala sub-district, Naogaon district (in northwestern Bangladesh bordering the Indian state of West Bengal). A poor tribal peasant, Ramni Mahan (age 48) was savagely killed by Islamic reactionaries. His dead body has been recovered by the local police.
V. March 6, 2003. Aladatpur jheel, Narail district town (southwest of the capital city of Dhaka). Local police have recovered the body of Pranab Chakroborty (age 26), a member of the minority Hindu community who was kidnapped by a group of Islamic fundamentalists on March 5.
VI. March 7, 2003. Sultanpur village, Bagerhat district (in southern Bangladesh bordering the Bay of Bengal). Islamic reactionaries attempted to kill Professor Sarbajit Chakraborty, a member of the minority Hindu community, seriously injuring him. He has been admitted to the Bagerhat General Hospital.
VII. March 7, 2003. Kaliatokor police station, Gazipur district (proximately northeast of the capital city of Dhaka). A police officer named Golam Nabi Pilot arrested a prominent Islamic fundamentalist named Md. Sahid (age 38) for smuggling a very valuable Hindu religious icon.
VIII. March 9, 2003. Baintala village, Ashasuni sub-district, Satkhira district (in southwestern Bangladesh bordering the Bay of Bengal and the Indian state of West Bengal). Pancharam Sana (age 45) was killed by a group of Islamic reactionaries when he refused to pay 200,000 in zizya tax (an extortion tax demanded by Islamic fundamentalists from non-Muslims).
IX. March 10, 2003. Daulatkhali Sadarpara village, Daulatpur sub-district, Kushtia district (in western Bangladesh bordering the Indian state of West Bengal). A Hindu villager named Shibu Sardar (age 35) was attacked by a group of Islamic fundamentalists.
X. March 11, 2003. Amincoloni area, Baejid police station, Chittagong district (in southeastern Bangladesh bordering the Indian state of Tripura and the Bay of Bengal). A Hindu woman, whose name was not disclosed, was raped by a group of Islamic fundamentalists. The victim’s mother went to the local police station to file a complaint.
XI. March 12, 2003. Debhata region, Satkhira district (in southwestern Bangladesh bordering the Indian state of West Bengal and the Bay of Bengal). Tarun Kumar Biswas (age 33), a member of the minority Hindu community and the son of Kartick Chandra Biswas, was murdered by a group of Islamic fundamentalists.
XII. March 12, 2003. Mirjapur Sahapara market area, Mirjapur sub-district, Tangail district (proximately north of the capital city of Dhaka). A Hindu-owned shop called Tumpa Jewelry was looted by a group of Islamic reactionaries who looted valuable goods worth more than 500,000 Taka (approximately US $10,000).
XIII. March 12, 2003. Dautiya village, Manickganj district (proximately west of the capital city of Dhaka). A group of Islamic fundamentalists attacked the home of Jagadish Saha, a member of the local minority Hindu community. Nine valuable Hindu religious icons were later found smashed to pieces.
XIV. March 13, 2003. Khoyra village, Bagmara sub-district, Rajshahi district (in western Bangladesh bordering the Indian state of West Bengal). The home of a local Hindu villager, Shambhunath Sil, was looted by a group of Islamic fundamentalists.
XV. March 17, 2003. Kotoali police station, Dhaka district (capital city of Bangladesh). Local police have arrested Tajul Islam, a local Islamic reactionary, for smuggling a valuable Hindu religious icon.
XVI. March 18, 2003. Gaurnadi municipality area, Barishal district (in southern Bangladesh bordering the Bay of Bengal). A group of Islamic fundamentalists attacked a predominantly Hindu concentrated area of Torky Port High School. The attackers have looted properties in excess of 300,000 Taka (approximately US $6,000). Two Hindus, Shhankar Das (age 60) and Nitai Das (age 45) were injured in the attack.
XVII. March 20, 2003. Gabindaganj police station, Gaibanda district (in northern Bangladesh very close to the Indian states of Assam and West Bengal). A very large and valuable religious icon of the Hindu God Krishna worth over 10 million Taka (approximately US $2 million) was recovered by the local police, who arrested a person named Abdul caught red-handed while smuggling the statue.
Undated incident(s):
District town of Nilphamari (in northern Bangladesh bordering the Indian state of West Bengal). Swapan Kumar, a member of the minority Hindu community and a teacher at the Nilfamari Girl’s School, was assaulted by a group of Islamic fundamentalists.