On Tuesday (13th August), Pinaki Bhattacharya, who is notorious for anti-India propaganda, took to X to whitewash the Islamist attack on the residence of famous Bangladeshi Hindu musician Rahul Anand. Notably, one of the most devastating stories coming out of violence-hit Bangladesh following the violent ouster of Sheikh Hasina was of famous Bangladeshi singer Rahul Anand whose house was looted and burnt down by an Islamist mob on 5th August.
However, in an apparent bid to whitewash the incident, Pinaki Bhattacharya said that Rahul Anand’s home and musical instruments were not “deliberately burned”. According to him, ‘someone’ set an neighbouring Awami League establishment on fire which accidentally spread to his house and destroyed everything. He added that it is unfortunate that the truth wasn’t fully disclosed which according to him is that Rahul Anand’s house was a collateral damage and that the destruction of the musician’s house was an ‘accident’. For him, the protesters who were indulging in arson torched the adjacent building linked to Awami League which happened to engulf the Hindu musician’s house.
Pinaki Bhattacharya also quoted Rahul Anand saying that the fire was ‘unintentional’ and that his family were forced to leave the house with only clothings.
Bhattacharya wrote, “Rahul Anand’s home and musical instruments were not deliberately burned. A fire was set to an Awami League establishment next to his home, and that fire accidentally spread to his residence, destroying everything. According to Rahul Anand, the fire was unintentional, and they were forced to leave their home with only the clothes on their backs as the house was engulfed in flames. It’s unfortunate that the truth wasn’t fully disclosed.”
It is pertinent to note that Pinaki Bhattacharya is a controversial person who is living in exile in France. He is a neo-convert to Islam and notorious for spearheading the ‘India Out’ campaign in Bangladesh. He has ties with Jihadi outfit Jamaat-e-Islami and Pakistan’s ISI and has been supporting the Taliban. Click here, to read more about him and his ties with Jihadi outfits.
Incidentally, apart from Bhattacharya, earlier some of the “friends” of Rahul Anand had also attempted to whitewash the incident as an attack on a Hindu singer claiming that his house was not torched rather it caught fire because it was adjacent to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s old house in Dhanmondi 32. They have argued that the destruction of Anand’s house had nothing to do with his religion, categorically noting that if the rioters wanted to, they would have not “allowed the opportunity for Rahul Anand’s family to escape alive” and would have torched them alive.
Incidentally, on 6th August, the official social media handles of Rahul Anand’s music band Joler Gaan posted a video which contrasted old visuals of the instruments and the condition of the house post-attack. While parts of Rahul Anand’s house could be seen ablaze, signs of vandalism and loot could also be seen in the video.
Later, on 8th August, Farhana Hamid, reportedly the business partner of Rahul Anand’s wife Urmila Shukla, wrote a long Facebook post in which she said that the fire incident at Rahul Anand’s house had nothing to do with religion. Her post was also shared from the official page of ‘Joler Gaan’ (Rahul Anand’s band) with the caption, ‘Please read the text and know the truth.’
In the post, Fashion designer Farhana Hamid said that miscreants targeted the Bangabandhu Museum in Dhanmondi 32 and set fire to it. Rahul Anand’s house is within the walls of the museum. Later his house was also set on fire.
According to Bangladeshi media outlet, Prothom Alo, Rahul Anand confirmed the sharing of the post from the official page of the song. He told Prothom Alo that people love him and that his house could not be set on fire.
Further in the post, Farhana Hamid argued that had the miscreants wanted to they would not have given his family a chance to get out alive.
“They would not have given this family a chance to get out like this if they set fire to Rahulda. And it is impossible to get out of that house if you don’t give a chance. Rahulda’s religion, caste, caste and culture have nothing to do with the fire in Rahulda’s house. So please don’t spread such rumours. In the conditions of the country, any rumor can take a dire shape. We become aware,” her Bangali post was quoted saying in Prothom Alo.
The 5th August incident
On the afternoon of 5th August, an Islamist mob reached the house of Rahul Anand. He was living in a rental house that was attacked. When the attack happened, Rahul, his wife Urmila Shukla, his son Tota and other family members were there. Somehow, they managed to escape and took shelter at an unknown location.
Back then, Rahul Anand’s family sources and the founding member of the band had mentioned that a mob attacked and “torched” the musician’s house.
Saiful Islam Journal, founding member of Joler Gaan said, “..From what I have heard, a group of goons attacked the residence and Rahul Da, Shukla Di (Rahul’s wife), Tota (his son) and other family members somehow got out.”
Speaking to The Daily Star, a family source had said, “As soon as they had broken the gate, they started ravaging the house taking whatever they could find for themselves. They took everything from furniture and mirrors to valuables. After that, they torched the whole house along with Rahul da’s musical instruments.”
Additionally, in the video of the incident shared by the official page of the band, the signs of vandalism and loot is clearly visible, negating the assertion that Rahul Anand’s house was not targeted in the aftermath of Sheikh Hasina’s ouster. It is pertinent to note that since the regime change in Bangladesh, more than 200 incidents of attacks and religious persecution of Hindus and other minority communities have been reported in the past few days.
Nonetheless, in September 2023, France’s President Emmanuel Macron made a friendly visit to Rahul’s house making it a centre of attention across the country. The house, where Rahul lived, was a 140-year-old place which has now been burnt to ashes with all the memories and history it contained.
