'Durga Puja mandaps targeted with Bearded demon effigies'

Beards were reportedly placed on demon effigies at 793 Durga Puja mandaps across Bangladesh this year, in what the Home Affairs Adviser described as an attempt to incite communal tension.

Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury confirmed that authorities have identified several individuals involved and that a General Diary (GD) has been filed with the police. Legal action will be taken against those responsible.

“The fascists and their associates attempted to provoke communal unrest by attaching beards to demon idols,” Chowdhury told reporters after a Law and Order Core Committee meeting at the Ministry of Home Affairs on Sunday. “Some so-called fascist intellectuals encouraged this act. But their conspiracy has failed. Durga Puja has once again been celebrated peacefully, safely, and festively across the country.”

According to the Dhaka Metropolitan Puja Committee and the National Puja Celebration Council, 33,355 Durga Puja mandaps were set up nationwide this year.

The adviser thanked the army, law enforcement agencies, the public, and the media for their role in maintaining peace during the festival.

Chowdhury linked the incident to broader efforts to destabilize the Chattogram Hill Tracts, saying that evidence suggests involvement of allies of “fascist forces.”

He also referred to reports from India’s West Bengal, where a demon effigy allegedly resembled Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Dr. Muhammad Yunus. “The act of adding beards to demon faces here appears linked to that incident. But due to law enforcement vigilance and cooperation from local Puja committees, this plot was foiled,” he said.

When asked about India’s response, Chowdhury said, “As a Bangladeshi, you should ask yourself who is truly responsible for this incident.”