Attack disrupts Baul music gathering at shrine in Sylhet

A gathering of Baul musicians at a shrine in Bishwanath upazila of Sylhet was disrupted after a group of local individuals launched an attack.

The attackers also warned that strict action would be taken if music gatherings were held there in the future.

The incident occurred near Ibrahim Shah Mazar in Sripur village on Sunday night. A video of the attack circulated widely on social media, particularly Facebook, from Monday morning.

According to the organisers, a Baul music session has traditionally been held at the shrine around a specific time of year for nearly 100 years. Devotees and spectators from across the Sylhet division regularly attend there. This year, a three-day Baul music session had been arranged. On the second day, however, more than 100 individuals suddenly gathered, attacked the venue, and disrupted the performance.

Contacted around 8:15 am on Tuesday, Bishwanath police station OC Gazi Mahbubur Rahman told Prothom Alo that police inspected the site immediately after the incident and that the situation is currently calm.

He clarified that the attack did not occur inside the shrine itself but on a stage set up adjacent to the village outside the main venue. The music on this stage had disturbed the sleep of local residents, who intervened to stop it.

The circulated video shows the attackers climbing onto the Baul stage and indiscriminately damaging instruments and the sound system. They vandalised the chairs provided for spectators, while the attackers reportedly chanted slogans before leaving the venue in a procession.

After the incident, Dudu Mia, a caretaker of the shrine, told newspersons that the ‘Urs’ festival around the shrine has been held for nearly a century, attracting devotees from across Sylhet each year. On Sunday night, one individual arrived with his associates and relatives and launched the attack without lodging any prior complaint with the shrine authorities. Following the incident, the attackers allegedly vandalised the windows of a nearby mosque early Monday morning and sought to blame the devotees of the shrine.

Elaborating on the matter, OC Gazi Mahbubur Rahman added that no damage occurred to the shrine or the main venue and that the festival continues as planned.

He noted that both sides have admitted their mistakes: playing loud music at night that disturbed local residents was inappropriate, and forcibly stopping the music was also wrong.

According to the OC, both parties have agreed locally to resolve the matter, and a date has been set for reconciliation. No formal legal case has been filed.