Dhaka, Saturday, May 1, 2004 Ahmadiya mosque capture bid foiled STAFF CORRESPONDENT
The police and local people on Friday foiled a bid to capture an Ahmadiya mosque at a village under Badarganj upazila in Rangpur, sources told New Age.
A large number of religious zealots held a meeting near Shyampur Ahmadiya mosque after the juma prayers to capture the mosque.
But they failed to capture the mosque as local chairman Azizur Rahman and his men impeded them.
They had sharp weapons and were hurling abuses on the Ahmadiyas. We, five hundred Ahmadiyas, are now living through insecurity, Munshi Abdul Hye, Ahmadiya imam of Badarganj, told New Age over telephone.
Earlier, 10 people were injured and 15 were abducted when 12 Ahmadiya houses at village Dharmapur and Dalpara were attacked on Thursday.
The abducted were later released after being tortured and threatened. Villagers now fear fresh attacks.
Three Ahmadiya villages are now virtually under siege, Bashir-ur-Rahman an Ahmadiya Muslim Jamaat spokesman told New Age.
The recent attacks on Ahmadiyas are being carried out by the students of nearby Awaliaganj Hafezia Madrassah led by Maulana Wahiduzzaman and Maulana Wadud two members of Jamaat-e-Islami, Munshi alleged.
The Ahmadiya Muslim Jamaat, Bangladesh slated the recent attacks and appealed to the government to take measures to ensure the safety of its members in Rangpur and all over the country.
Source: http://www.newagebd.com/may1st04/010504/front.html#13
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