Persecution, discrimination, and atrocities such as murder, torture, extortion, rape, and forced conversion against the minority Hindu population in Bangladesh are not isolated incidents. They form part of a planned strategy to kill, convert, or drive Hindus from their ancestral lands. Islamists often use offensive slurs like “Malaun” (cursed by Allah), “Kafir” (non-believer), or accuse Hindus of being agents of India or its intelligence agency, R&AW. Experts, including Dr. Richard Benkin, Kalyan Chaudhuri, Wardatul Akmam, Sabyasachi Ghosh Dastidar, and Jaideep Mazumdar, describe these near-century-long atrocities as part of a genocidal campaign against Hindus led by Islamists.
After the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s coalition government on 5 August 2024, Islamists have systematically targeted Hindu educators in well-known schools and colleges across Bangladesh, aiming to remove them from their positions. With hidden and sometimes open support from political parties and Islamist groups like Jamaat-e-Islami, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), and Hefajot-e-Islam, extremists are organising “protests” to demand the resignation of Hindu educators. These protests rely on false complaints and misinformation to rally crowds, with criminals and party supporters making up a large part of the protesters.
Between 5 August and 1 September 2024, at least 60 Hindu educators were forced to resign. Over 100 Hindu public servants were either forced to resign or sacked by the unelected interim government of Bangladesh. Islamists and the interim government are working to remove Hindus from the education and public sectors. This would allow extremists to radicalise young Muslim students and pressure Hindu students to convert. With few Hindus in government roles, it would be nearly impossible for victims to seek justice. Aggressors would find it easy to convince a biased administration to ignore atrocities against the remaining 13 million Hindus in Bangladesh. KantiLal Acharya, the former Acting Headmaster of Bhatiari Haji Tobarak Ali High School, is the latest victim of this campaign.
Organised Protests and Demands for Resignation
In late 2019, Hindu educator Liton Das was forced to resign from the same school on suspicious charges with no evidence. Bhabana Acharya, KantiLal Acharya’s daughter, recalls that her father was framed by local Islamists. KantiLal Acharya had a distinguished 35-year teaching career and was highly respected by his students.
On 15 April 2025, KantiLal Acharya faced allegations of misconduct and bias, accused of violating the process for appointing the president of an ad-hoc committee that runs the school. However, the school’s guidelines state that the acting headmaster has no role in appointing the committee president. There is no evidence that KantiLal Acharya broke any rules or overstepped his authority.
Other teachers and eyewitnesses say local BNP leaders and activists held a grudge against the appointed president, Mahiuddin Ahmed, Acting Headmaster KantiLal Acharya, and senior teachers Harun-Al-Rashid and Zafar Ahmed. KantiLal Acharya was barred from entering the school and resuming his duties by some fellow teachers and authorities, who warned he could face humiliation. As Mahiuddin Ahmed is a member of Jamaat-e-Islami, hatred towards Hindus (Hindumisia) is the only explanation for why only KantiLal Acharya, the Hindu teacher, was threatened.
Bhabana Acharya says her father refused to give in to pressure, insisting he was innocent and that the allegations were baseless. He asked why he should flee like a corrupt person and demanded evidence of the accusations.
On 16 April 2025, a mob of 139 people, including only six or seven students from the BNP’s student wing and Islamists with no connection to the school, attacked the school premises with crude petrol bombs. They demanded KantiLal Acharya’s resignation, calling him “Dedaiya Halarfoya,” a vulgar religious slur against Hindus in the local Chattagram dialect commonly used by Islamists. The protesters tried to force KantiLal Acharya to sign a prepared resignation letter stating he had committed malpractice and was resigning willingly. Despite being harassed and manhandled, the elderly teacher remained firm. After hours of harassment, he was forced to sign a different resignation letter stating he was resigning for “personal reasons.” The Islamists also attempted to physically attack him and cracked the skull of one of Mahiuddin Ahmed’s close associates, who was standing next to KantiLal Acharya.
Claims and Official Response
Bhatiari Union BNP President Nurul Anwar claimed KantiLal Acharya was forced to resign due to pressure from an angry public. He stated that “extensive charges of corruption” were raised against him. Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Mohammad Fakhrul Islam told Prothom Alo that he is leading a probe committee, including advisory members of the Chattagram Secondary and Intermediate Education Board, to investigate the matter.
Most students taught by KantiLal Acharya supported him, saying the allegations were baseless. Notably, none of the three Muslim teachers accused alongside him were forced to resign.
References
- The New Indian Express: Journalists detained, Hindu teachers forced to resign in Bangladesh
https://www.newindianexpress.com/world/2024/Aug/21/the-new-normal-journalists-detained-hindu-teachers-forced-to-resign-in-bangladesh - India Today: Hindu teachers, principals forced to resign in Bangladesh
https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/hindu-teachers-principals-forced-resignation-bangladesh-viral-videos-taslima-nasreen-2591679-2024-09-01 - Organiser: Islamisation of educational institutions in Bangladesh
https://organiser.org/2024/08/21/252776/world/asia/islamisation-of-educational-institution-in-bangladesh-islamists-force-100s-of-hindu-teachers-professionals-to-resign/ - Reports compiled by local Hindu organisations
[Unpublished reports by local organisations] - Victim testimony of Bhabana Acharya
[A personal testimony] - Facebook post
https://www.facebook.com/share/v/17nBctgddE/ - Prothom Alo: Local news
https://en.prothomalo.com/bangladesh/local-news/j6f0z672ld
