ISLAMABAD: Police reported that furious protests erupted in Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority country, with thousands of people taking to the streets. The demonstrations were triggered by the burning of dozens of copies of the Holy Quran, resulting in injuries to several police officers.
Police officers said they fired rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse a crowd of “at least 10,000 people” overnight from Sunday to Monday. The crowd had tried to attack two men accused of destroying copies of the holy book, according to Ajbahar Ali Shaikh, a police officer.
During the clashes, the protesters injured at least 14 policemen, but the officer didn’t have details about injuries among the protesters.
The police arrested the two men, Nurur Rahman, a school principal, and Mahbub Alam, in the northeastern city of Sylhet, which is one of the most conservative parts of Bangladesh.
The accused stated that they burned the Holy Quran because some copies were “very old and had printing mistakes”. Shaikh mentioned that the police had “seized 45 copies of the burned Holy Quran”.
Certain Muslim scholars argue that disposing of the Holy Quran, when it is no longer usable, is permissible if done respectfully.
Last month, tensions escalated between Muslim countries and Sweden and Denmark following protests involving public desecrations of the Holy Quran, which included setting pages on fire.
Both Sweden and Denmark condemned the desecrations but upheld their laws regarding freedom of speech and assembly.
Bangladesh, with a population of 170 million, has 90 per cent Muslims, while the rest are mainly Hindus and Christians.
Violence over religious sentiment is common in the South Asian country, and minorities often face attacks over rumors of alleged blasphemy and defamatory posts mocking Islam on social media.
