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Uneasy calm in Pabna villages

9 held for attacks on Hindus

M Abul Kalam Azad and Ahmed Humayun Kabir Topu, Pabna
Nine people have been arrested in simultaneous raids at Sathia upazila in Pabna in connection with arson, vandalism and looting of over 100 Hindu houses in Sahapara and Ghoshpara on Saturday.
However, police are yet to identify the people who had been demanding money from local Hindu trader Babul Saha, whose refusal led to the attacks on the Hindu houses.
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The extortionists had planned to frame his son Rajib Saha for maligning Islam on Facebook after Babul refused to pay them.
The arrestees are Alamgir Hossain, Sanwar Hossain, Md Helal Molla, Abdul Jalil Mia, Milon Hossain, Daud Biswas, Rezaul Karim Biswas, Rubel Hossain and Rezaul Karim.
Locals said four of the arrestees are supporters of the BNP.
Four teams of police raided their houses in different areas of Khetupara, Ataikula and Gourigram unions and made the arrests early yesterday. The raids began just after midnight and continued until morning, police said.
“Our efforts to nab the culprits continue but are being hampered due to hartal duties of the cops," said Abu Bakar Siddique, assistant superintendent of
police in Pabna.
He added police have already identified a number of those involved in the attacks and looting as well as the assault on police when they were trying to lift a blockade on the Pabna-Dhaka highway at Bonogram bazaar on Saturday.
The blockade was imposed by a group of people demanding Rajib's "execution".
"We have identified many from the video footage, photographs of the attacks and statements of victims, locals and witnesses," the police officer told The Daily Star at Ataikula Police Station.
Involved in the attacks and looting were hundreds of people, all of whom are yet to be identified, he said. "Our efforts to identify all the culprits and arrest the already identified persons will go on
together.
A three-member probe body was formed yesterday to investigate the incident of Saturday. Headed by Additional District Magistrate Munshi Md Moniruzzaman, it has been asked to submit a report in three days.
Babul filed a case with Ataikula Police Station on Sunday night accusing 2,000-3,000 people of the attacks on and looting of his Sahapara house. Twenty persons were named in the case.
Sub-Inspector Nazmul Haq Bepari of the police station filed another case on the same night, accusing 2,000-3,000 people, mostly unnamed, for blocking the highway and attacking cops with brick chips. The attacks on the cops coincided with the attacks on the Hindu houses.
Sub-Inspector Meherul
and constables Mizanur Rahman and Abdul Momin of the police station were injured, the SI said in the case.
Police are looking for Babul's son who went into hiding after a group of youths alleged that he had maligned the Prophet. They caught Babul and confined him to a shop at Bonogram bazaar.
Rescued by locals and police, he is now under Ataikula police custody for safety.
But groups of people attacked the Hindu houses for about two and a half hours in Sahapara and Ghoshpara, which are very close to Bonogram bazaar.
Meanwhile, Sahapara, Ghoshpara and Bonogram bazaar areas were tensely calm yesterday evening. Although the Hindu families who had fled their houses during the attacks are now back, they are still
living in fear.
"We are ashamed of what happened in our area. It has destroyed generations of old glory of coexistence of Hindus and Muslims,” Yunus Ali, 70, a trader and freedom fighter, told The Daily Star at Bonogram bazaar.
Local Awami League leader Abdul Gafur said he and some others started consulting with the local Hindu community so as to comfort them.
Nazrul Islam, vice president of Pabna unit of Swechchhasebak Dal and a trader at Bonogram bazaar, said Rajib Saha - not all Hindus - should be punished if he has maligned the Prophet.
Bonogram Bazaar Bonik Samity president Hariprada Saha said Muslims should take the lead in restoring the trust of the Hindus.