Would send suicide bombers to Kolkata: Bangladeshi cleric spews anti-Hindu hate

India Today

14-05-2025

In a recurring marker of post-Sheikh Hasina Bangladesh's radical turn, Islamist cleric Maulana Abdul Quddus Faruqi was seen openly calling for suicide attacks in Kolkata. He said who needed fighter jets when suicide bombers would do a better job. The Bangladeshi cleric said the Taliban used suicide bombing as a successful tactic against superpowers like the US and the Soviet Union.advertisement"If the Bangladeshi army tells me to go capture Kolkata, I'll make a plan. Forget about using 70 fighter jets, I wouldn't even use seven planes to take over Kolkata. Why would I need 70 planes? I would send suicide bombers to Kolkata if the Bangladesh Army granted him permission to do so," the Islamist cleric Faruqi was heard saying in the video published on March 8.However, a short clip from the 11-minute video has gone viral on social media with several Bangladesh-based Hindu rights bodies sharing it.
The full video on Hasan Media's YouTube channel now has over 1.3 lakh views.This video has outperformed the channel's average, gaining over 130 times more views, nearly 90 times more likes, and almost 600 times more comments. Over the past 66 days since it was uploaded, the video has averaged 1,981 views, 42 likes, and 27 comments per day, according to Lenostube, a YouTube analysis and promotion platform.BANGLADESH ISLAMIST WANTS TO CARRY OUT SUICIDE BOMBING IN KOLKATAadvertisement"If the Bangladeshi army permits, here's what I will do. What will I use? Suicide bombers. I'll send suicide bombers to Kolkata," Faruqi said, invoking what he said was a Quranic Aayat. He added it meant, "Die first, then kill".Then, the Islamist was heard saying, "There's another verse I learnt: 'Die first, then kill the Kafirs'", which he said was "a successful tactic used by the Taliban to defeat superpowers like America and Russia."While explaining the Taliban tactics, Faruqi added, "The Taliban fighters used bikes with bombs strapped to their bodies, riding straight towards army camps [in Afghanistan]. They were shot with bullets, but one bullet doesn't kill you right away. They crashed their bikes into the camp's wall, causing a massive explosion that killed 300 American soldiers and destroyed the camp. Who died first? The Muslim biker. And who did he kill? The Kafirs."The Islamist, who goes by the name of 'Allama Abdul Quddus Faruqi' on Facebook, has uploaded several videos where he is seen making anti-Hindu and anti-India remarks.BANGLADESH ISLAMIST FARUQI'S SERMON FULL OF HINDU-HATEIn the 11-minute video on the Bangladesh-based Hasan Media YouTube channel, Faruqi also made several inflammatory statements regarding Hindus, in an attempt to provoke the audience.advertisement"I know their favourite foods are dirty things like urine, dung, and turtles. I know how little they understand, I know how weak they are physically. I know how much faith they have in their religion. I know all this. If you don't know these things, you can't be a Muslim commander. Is that clear?" Faruqi said."I know how scared these Hindus get when they see blood. These idol-worshippers are terrified of blood," Faruqi added.The Hasan Media YouTube channel, where this sermon by Faruqi was uploaded, has over 12.4K subscribers and 148 videos."Hasan Media Channel presents Waz Mahfil, Islamic songs (Ghazals), and many other Islamic videos," says the description of the YouTube Channel.The channel has also given a platform to Jashimuddin Rahmani, the chief of the Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), an al-Qaida-affiliated terrorist group.Rahmani, who was released by the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus just days after the exit of Sheikh Hasina on August 5, 2024, had called on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to "free Bengal from [Prime Minister Narendra] Modi's rule and declare its independence."These statements by Islamists like Rahmani and Faruqi reveal the alarming rise of extremist rhetoric in post-Hasina Bangladesh, where radical voices find safe spaces both in real life and on social media platforms, without fear of consequences. And the secular path that Hasina had charted for Bangladesh now seems to be getting gradually undone.advertisementThese statements are not just a concern because of their content and rhetoric, but also because they promote hatred towards India and Hindus, influencing the minds of those who listen to such views. Unlike offline sermons, the geographical reach of such toxic content is huge.