According to Polish Jewish author, Raphael Lemkin genocide is, “… the destruction of a nation or an ethnic group… generally speaking genocide does not necessarily mean the immediate destruction of a nation, except when accomplished by mass killings of all members of a nation. It is extended rather to signify a coordinated plan of different actions aiming at the destruction of essential foundation of the life of national groups, with the aim of annihilating the groups themselves.”
What is important and interesting here is the ongoing violence against Hindus and the intent to destroy an entire race. In the light of the recent violence against Hindus and other minorities, Amnesty International has notified the international community of the ongoing violence against Hindus and other minorities in Bangladesh:
The violence against Hindus and other minorities in 2024 must be understood in the context of a larger intent or aim to destroy or annihilate a race or a group of people, that is, in terms of genocide, as described by Lemkin. In the case of the Hindu Bengalis, the long-term idea to annihilate the race has been done in three ways, mass killing, conversion under threat, and sexual violence. In this and subsequent blogs, I will talk of these genocides, ethnic cleansings, and sexual violence that are lesser known but that happened in East Pakistan long before 2024. My intent here is to build up a narrative of Bengali Hindu genocide in order to come face to face with the trauma inherent in the Bengali Hindu psyche. It is only via narrative and speech and bringing the violence to light, that one starts to heal.
Sitakund massacre (1950):
Sitakund is an administrative center in the Chittagong Division, Bangladesh. It is an important Hindu pilgrimage center. It has the Chandranath Temple and hot springs. Every year during the Mahashivaratri (The Festival of Shiva) Hindu pilgrims from all over Bangladesh, Assam, and Tripura visit this place and pray. There is usually a carnival that happens at the same time. In 1950s, the Muslim Ansar group attacked the Hindu pilgrims who visited the place. The intent was again long term, to destroy the entire race. Here is a description of what happened on February 1950 in Sitakund:
On February 10, 2024 there was loot, arson, abduction, forcible conversion and whole massacre started in Chittagong. The Hindus of Chittagong asked the local authorities to abandon the carnival at Sitakund in view of the anti Hindu activities of the Ansars. The District Judge who was the ex office President of the Shrine Committee was non committal. The Divisional Commissioner of Chittagong Division however assure necessary police precautions and asked to continue with the carnival at Sitakund. On February 12, 1950 Hindu pilgrimages who arrived in Chittagong were assaulted. On February 14, 1950 the Hindu pilgrimages who left Chittagong went missing. On February 15, 1950 when another batch arrived and took the train to Sitakund, they were attacked by the Ansars and the Muslim mobs and massacred at the Sitakund railway station.
References:
1. A. J. Kamra (2000). The Prolonged Partition and its Pogroms: Testimonies on Violence Against Hindus in East Bengal, 1964. New Delhi: Voice of India, p, 67.
2. Sinha, Dinesh Chandra. (2012). (ed). Raktaranjit Dhaka Barisal Ebong, 1950s. Kolkata, Codex, p, 71.
