Cases have been filed with the police in Brahmanbarhia over Sunday's attacks on temples and houses belonging to Hindus in Nasirnagar Upazila.
Published : 31 Oct 2016, 01:57 PM
Police said two persons, including the local temple's priest, filed separate cases on Monday.
"The cases accuse 1,000 to 1,200 unidentified persons," said Assistant Superintendent of Poice Abdul Karim.
He said that nine people, held over Sunday's attacks, have been showed arrested in the cases.
At least 15 temples in Brahmanbarhia's Nasirnagar have been vandalised on allegations of disrespect shown to Islam on Facebook.
Over 100 houses belonging to Hindus in the area have also been vandalised and looted.
After the mayhem for hours on Sunday afternoon, two temples in adjacent Habiganj's Madhabpur came under attack, police and witnesses said.
Locals said Nasirnagar's incident started with a Facebook post by one Rasraj Das, son of Jagannath Das from Harinberh village under Haripur Union Parishad.
Police detained Rasraj on Friday immediately after the allegation of blasphemy had surfaced against him. He was sent to jail following a court order.
Protests against Rasraj's post were called under the banner of 'Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat' in Habiganj district headquarters and Nasirnagar. Demonstrations were also announced in Habiganj's Madhabpur.
A group of madrasa students demonstrated on the premises of Brahmanbarhia Press Club while hundreds of people blocked Sarail-Nasirnagar-Lakhai road by torching tyres on Sunday afternoon.
Superintendent of Police Mizanur Rahman, quoting witnesses, said a group of the demonstrators, armed with local weapons, vandalised the temples at Duttubarhi, Namashudraparha and Ghoshparha, and Jagannath Temple and Goura Temple.
They also vandalised and looted the houses of the Hindu families. Several priests were injured in the attack, the SP said.
Islami Oikya Jote leader late Mufti Fazlul Haque Amini's district Brahmanbarhia is a stronghold of the Islamist parties.
In January, a music college named after the renowned composer and music teacher Ustad Alauddin Khan was vandalised in the district following the death of a madrasa student.