A Hindu youth in Bangladesh has been sentenced to 5 years in jail by a court for alleged blasphemy. Paritosh Sarkar, accused of making blasphemous comments on Facebook, has also been fined 30,000 Taka by the Rangpur Cyber Tribunal. Sarkar was convicted under Digital Security Act by judge Abdul Majid Roy of the tribunal on Wednesday.
Paritosh Sarkar has been awarded a sentence of a total of 11 years in jail, as he has been awarded four sentences of one year, two years, three years and five years. However, the sentences will run concurrently, therefore he will need to stay in jail for 5 years. Prosecution Counsel Ruhul Amin Talukdar said that Paritosh has been convicted for hurting religious sentiments.
Poritosh was sentenced under section 31(1) of the Digital Security Act which criminalises the publication of anything that “creates enmity, hatred or hostility among different classes or communities of the society, or destroys communal harmony”.
Paritosh Sarkar had allegedly posted an image on Facebook in October 2021, which was deemed blasphemous by Muslims. Following the image posted on the social media platform was spotted by Islamists, his village was attacked by a mob, and the entire village was burned down on 17 October 2021. The incident took place in Bara Karimpur Hindu village of Ramnathpur union in Pirganj upazila of Rangpur district. The mob was mobilised by making announcements on the mosque loudspeakers.
Alleging that the Facebook post by Paritosh Sarkar insulted the religious feeling of Muslims, a large number of Islamists had arrived at his house at the village on 17 October 2021. However, the police arrived on time, and controlled the mob. While police were able to protect the house, the mob diverted their anger to the entire village, and launched a massive attack.
An entire fishing village of Hindus was burned down by Islamists, as over 60 houses of Hindus were torched in the attack. Before torching the houses, the Islamists had vandalised the village, and looted the houses, taking away valuables, livestock and other items. Hindu temples in the village were vandalised, with the idols broken down. The house of Paritosh was also later vandalised and the cowshed was torched as the police was overpowered by the mob.
The villages fled to the nearby paddy fields when their village was being burned down. Police had to resort to firing in the air and firing rubber bullets to control the mob, and the situation was brought under control by the night with the arrival of additional forces. Paritosh and his family also fled from the village.
After the incident, cases were lodged not only for the attack on the village, but also against Paritosh Sarkar for allegedly triggering the riot. He was a class 10 student at that time, and was aged around 15-16 years. He was arrested by police after some days from Joypurhat, where he along with his family was staying at the house of a relative.
Paritosh was denied bail several times, and he was kept in solitary confinement for several months during the trial. However, the prison authorities had told his lawyer and family that he was kept separated for his safety. He was finally granted bail on May 9, 2022, but earlier this month he was again sent to jail by the court ahead of delivering the verdict.
Police have claimed that after the arrest, Paritosh Sarkar confessed to committing blasphemy, and that he was 19-years-old at that time. However, Paritosh and his family maintains that he didn’t posted the image, and his phone was broken beyond repair at that time. They said that there is no evidence that he had posted the image.
However, the court rejected these arguments and convicted him of “hurting the religious sentiments”. His lawyer said that they will move the High Court against the verdict.
While Paritosh has been convicted and sentenced for the Facebook post, nobody has been convicted so far for the attack on the Hindu village. Around 150 people have been booked in the case, and the trials in three cases registered for the incident are still going on. While 72 people are on the run, 74 accused in the case of the attack on the village have been granted bail, and they are roaming free. Those who are on bail include village mosque’s moazzem Rabiul Islam, who made the calls from the mosque loudspeaker for people to gather, Saikat Mandal who masterminded the violence, and Ujjal Hasan, who had taken a screenshot of the ‘blasphemous’ Facebook post and spread it.
