Violence against minority community

We note with a great deal of concern that the recent eruptions of political violence have been marked by some attacks on members of Hindu community with their houses and temples vandalised. Reports of such incidents have come from different areas of Noakhali, Chittagong, Barisal, Bagerhat and Gazipur.
That this is very unfortunate as well as outrageous is saying the least. We condemn the perpetrators of such cowardly and despicable acts in the strongest term. The government must deal with the situation firmly to nip the sinister trend in the bud.
Since the members of minority community are vulnerable to the machinations of trouble-mongers, necessary precautionary measures should have been put in place earlier on to pre-empt any untoward incident.
At first, reports of violence on the community came from Begumganj in Noakhali after the verdict on Delwar Hossain Sayedee came out on Thursday; then a pattern set in.
The government must fill in the gaps in its security arrangements as it cannot afford to be caught unprepared in the future. We urge the government to ensure reinforced police presence, especially in places that are inhabited by the people of minority community.
As a society having homogenous ethnic texture, communal harmony has traditionally been Bangladesh's hallmark. Throughout the ages people of different religious faiths have been coexisting peacefully in these parts.
So, the violence that has happened might have been a ploy of the vested quarters to smear the secular image of the country.
The government should now stand by the victims, maintain constant vigil by law-enforcers as well as by local people to thwart any further attempt to attack them or cause communal disharmony.
Every specific instance of vandalism against the minority community, their houses and religious places must be probed to identify the culprits and take measures to bring them to justice. At the same time, the victims need to be compensated so that they are able to rebuild their lives.