In a disturbing escalation of attacks on cultural heritage, the Shahjahanduddin (R.) Auliya Mazar in Gouripur, Mymensingh, was subjected to a targeted assault on Thursday night. The centuries-old Sufi shrine, located in the quiet village of Tengapara, suffered significant structural damage and a deliberate act of biological desecration that has left the local community in a state of shock and mounting fury.
The perpetrators struck under the cover of darkness, demolishing the shrine’s boundary walls and reducing them to rubble. Beyond mere structural vandalism, the attackers sought to defile the sanctity of the site by hurling polythene bags containing human excrement and cow dung into the inner sanctum. The discovery was made at dawn on Friday by devotees who arrived for morning prayers, only to find the hallowed ground littered with filth and the perimeter destroyed.
Md. Saidur Rahman, the 70-year-old Khadem (custodian) of the shrine, has tended to the site for four decades. Visibly shaken, he noted that the mazar dates back to the Mughal era and has historically been a place of peace. “I have served here for forty years, and we have never witnessed such malice,” he stated. “This is not just an attack on a building; it is an assault on our history and our faith.”
Summary of Desecration: Shahjahanduddin (R.) Auliya Mazar
| Category | Details |
| Historical Period | Established during the Mughal Empire |
| Location | Tengapara, Gouripur Upazila, Mymensingh |
| Structural Damage | Boundary walls completely demolished |
| Type of Desecration | Use of biological waste to defile the inner sanctum |
| Local Response | Widespread protests and demands for judicial action |
| Police Status | Preliminary inspection complete; no arrests made |
Local residents, including Farrukh Ahmed, have expressed concerns that the incident was a calculated attempt to incite communal tension. As hundreds of villagers from neighbouring areas gathered on Friday morning to protest, the mood remained tense. Md. Jewel Miah, a local Union Parishad member, visited the scene and formally notified the police, describing the throwing of impurities as a “gross act of audacity” designed to humiliate the devotees.
The official response from the Gouripur Police Station has drawn scrutiny for its seemingly downplayed tone. Officer-in-Charge (OC) Md. Kamrul Hasan confirmed that evidence of the vandalism and the presence of filth were found during an on-site inspection. However, he suggested that the incident should not be “blown out of proportion,” noting that the shrine had not held a major Urs (annual festival) in eight to ten years. He claimed that “major criminals” were unlikely to be involved and remarked that a formal written complaint had yet to be filed.
This dismissive stance from law enforcement has failed to quell the unrest among locals, who argue that the antiquity and religious significance of the site demand a rigorous criminal investigation. Many fear that if such acts of sacrilege are treated as minor misdemeanours, it may lead to a pattern of impunity for those targeting minority religious practices and historical monuments across the region.