Bangladesh may drop Islam as country's official religion

Following a hike in attacks on people of other faiths in the country, Bangladesh may drop Islam as the country’s official religion.

Of late, Christians, Hindus and Muslim minority Shias have faced attacks that are believed to have been carried out by Islamic extremists.



The country’s Supreme Court is currently hearing arguments in favour of removing Islam as the official religion of Bangladesh, according to Daily Mail.

While Islam has been the official religion of the country since 1988, many minority religious leaders argue that the decision to designate Islam the official religion was illegal.

It is however unclear whether the move would have much support  in the country, where 90 per cent of the population is Muslim, 8 per cent are Hindu and 2 per cent is made up of other minority religions.

Last week, Bangladesh arrested three militants over the murder of a top Hindu priest, the latest in a series of attacks on religious minorities in the Muslim-majority nation.

Bangladesh arrests extremists over Hindu priest's murder

Police said the three members of the banned militant group Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh were arrested in the northern district of Panchagarh where the attack took place, with weapons in their possession.

Bangladesh has seen an upsurge in attacks by extremist groups on minorities including Christians and Shia, Sufi and Ahmadi Muslims.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s secular government has blamed the attacks on the JMB and other local militant groups and accuses the political opposition of trying to destabilise the country.

This article originally appeared on Independent