Mob of Muslim extremists attack Catholic church in Bangladesh

(March 24, 2010) In Bangladesh a mob of more than 500 Muslim extremists attacked Christ the Saviour Catholic Church in Boldipukur, some 335 kilometres from the country’s capital of Dhaka. The incident, which occurred last Sunday, was triggered by a dispute over land. According to an initial account, five indigenous tribal Christians were seriously injured. The local parish priest, Fr Leo Desai, told AsiaNews that some local Muslims have been trying to get the land in question for some years. Recently however, “a court ruled that it was owned by Catholics.”
Violence broke out when construction for a boundary wall began. The parish, which owns the land, donated it to two nearby educational institutions. By verbal agreement however, the church had already conceded the land for school use as far back as 1973. The extremist mob attacked everyone present at the construction site, wounding many and injuring five seriously. The attackers also hit a Catholic priest, Fr. Silas Kurju, who was visiting the site at the time of the attack. Father Leo said he is very disappointed by the “silence” of local police who stood idly by when the extremists struck.
Christ the Saviour Catholic Church in Boldipukur was built in 1951. It has a congregation of some 3,600 people, mostly from tribal communities.