Tipra Motha leader condemns vandalism of historic Maharaja Bir Chandra Library in Bangladesh

Tipra Motha leader Pradyot Manikya Deb Barma expressed his dismay over the vandalism of the 135-year-old Maharaja Bir Chandra Library in the Comilla district of Bangladesh.

In a tweet, Pradyot stated, "The vandalism of the 135-year Maharaja Bir Chandra library in Comilla by hooligans and the burning of the books and historical documents shows how much love they have for us."

"But we will not react and show restraint because if we do our minorities will suffer in Bangladesh," Debbarma added.

The historic library, which housed over 5,000 books, including rare and ancient texts, was targeted by a group of vandals on Monday following a victory procession in the city.

The vandalism of the 135 year Maharaja Bir chandra library in Comilla by hooligans and the burning of the books and historical documents shows how much love they have for us . But We will not react and show restraint because if we do our minorities will suffer in bangladesh pic.twitter.com/86HSCcqh9Y

— Pradyot_Tripura (@PradyotManikya) August 8, 2024

The attackers first set fire to the caretaker's room, destroying some books, and then proceeded to the second floor, where they vandalised and looted numerous books, some of which were over 200 years old.

Ranjit, the caretaker of the library, was away during the incident and was shocked to discover the extent of the damage upon his return. Visiting the library on Wednesday, one could see the aftermath, with smoke still emanating from the caretaker's room and shattered glass and scattered books throughout the premises.