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Rights activists on Monday said that the ongoing mob violence carried a legacy of the continued impunity and injustice.

At a discussion, they also dubbed the ongoing mob violence as the continuation of the sectarian attack on Buddhist temples and houses in Cox’s Bazar 13 years ago.

Based on a false allegation of spreading religious hatred through social media, a mob carried out arson attacks on 13 Buddhist temples at Ramu, 4 in Patiya and 2 in Ukhiya, and more than 50 houses in the three upazilas on September 29, 2012.  

The activists from several rights groups, speaking at a discussion held at Dhaka Reporters’ Unity auditorium, alleged that the interim government failed to defuse the mob violence which were frequently organised by common believers of a particular religion.

They highly criticised home adviser retired Lieutenant General Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, who said that the Sunday attack in Guimara of Khagrachari was orchestrated by India and the ousted ‘fascist’ Awami League supporters.

Chair of the discussion, former teacher of Jahangirnagar University and economist Anu Muhammad recollected that after the Ramu incident in 2012, the then government portrayed the attack as a conspiracy against the trial of 1971 war criminals.

‘Without detailed investigation, the home adviser has followed the suit. His remark is irresponsible,’ Anu said.

He opined that the Bengali settlers having a particular religious belief were forcibly uprooting the national minority people from their ancestral homes in the Chittagong Hill Tract. 

Supreme Court lawyer Jyotirmoy Barua, who hailed from Ramu, regretted that investigations into 18 criminal cases, lodged following the Ramu attack, had not been completed in 13 years.

‘I doubt about the progress of the trial process because the accused were involved in ruling-class politics,’ Jyotirmoy said. 

He added that over 20,000 cases against sectarian violence across the country were lodged after the 2001 national elections, but ended up with no progress.

Dhaka University sociology professor Samina Lutfa observed that the patterns of sectarian violence did not change in the past 13 years.

‘Mob attacks on vulnerable groups like religious minorities and women happen followed by false tagging on social media posts,’ Samina said.

She raised her concerns over an emergence of ‘religious fascism’ by the ‘victims’ of Awami League regime.

Rights activists Sujit Chowdhury, Ferdous Ara Rumi, Communist Party of Bangladesh general secretary Abdullah Al Kafi Ratan, singer Arup Rahi, journalist Tahmid Zami, among others, took part in the discussion moderated by student leader Meghmallar Bosu.