FULBARIA, Bangladesh — The torture and harassment that a Christian pastor in Meherpur district has faced for more than a year loomed anew in December when a 4,000-strong crowd of Muslims celebrating Islam’s largest festival accused him of “misleading” Muslims.
Jhontu Biswas, 31, said residents of Fulbaria town, 168 miles west of Dhaka, accused him of misleading Muslims by distributing Christian booklets. They confronted him en masse Dec. 9 as they gathered for the Islamic Eid al-Adha festival of sacrifice. Biswas denied the accusations against him, and the Muslims threatened to harm him and other converts to Christianity if a new government came to power following Dec. 29 elections, he said.
Fortunately for Biswas, the left-leaning Awami League-led Grand Alliance won in the election, and it does not include Islamic fundamentalist parties such as Jamaat-e-Islami. Police had arrested Biswas Dec. 31 on trumped-up drug charges — but instead of taking him to the police station, they took him to a nearby mosque.
Share with others: