1990 Bangladesh anti-Hindu violence

In 1988, President Hussain Muhammad Ershad, had amended the Constitution of Bangladesh to declare Islam as the state religion of Bangladesh. In the fall of 1989, an anti-Hindu pogrom took place in Bangladesh, marked by widespread destruction of Hindu temples and violence against the Hindus, following the laying of foundation of Ram temple in faraway Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh, India. The relations between the majority Muslims and minority Hindus remained tense and as the events unfolded in Ayodhya. ==Babri Mosque conflict==

On 29 October, the Jamaat-e-Islami-funded newspaper The Daily Inqilab ran a top story "Babri mosque destroyed". Tensions began to mount in the country after the publication of the rumour that Babri mosque had been demolished. Dhaka In Old Dhaka, Muslim protesters attempted to set fire to Hindu temples which was foiled by the police. The demonstrators, however, seized the cameras of the newsmen outside the temple. The administrator imposed curfew in parts of Dhaka following the incident. On 30 October, while President Hussain Muhammad Ershad was addressing a youth conference in Bangabhavan, Islamist mobs attacked the Gouri Math and set fire to Hindu-owned shops just to the south of Bangabhavan. On 31 October, about 1,000 Muslims allegedly marched to the Indian embassy in Dhaka. The curfew was extended to the entire city. In Lalbagh, the Dhakeshwari Temple and other buildings with the temple complex were looted, vandalised and set on fire. The residence of the priest and ten other Hindu families were looted, vandalised and set on fire. The priest saved his life by jumping over the wall of the temple complex. The arson continued for four hours. On the evening of 30 October, trouble erupted in the city. Around 100 Hindus were injured in separate incidents of violence in Patharganj, Boalkhali, Anwara and Hathazari. Other places Anti-Hindu violence was reported from Dhaka and 12 other cities of Bangladesh. The Daily Ittefaq reported incidents of anti-Hindu violence from Jessore, Narail, Gaibandha, Mymensingh, Sunamganj and Sylhet. ==Aftermath==

The Hindus displaced during the attacks on Pahartali in Chittagong, set up a refugee camp on a hill above the Kaibalyadham temple, where around 500 Hindus took shelter. ==See also==