That a benevolent charity like Bidyanondo, perhaps most noted for its one-taka-meal (ek takar ahaar), has to justify its roots as “Muslim” as opposed to being “Hindu” (as alleged on social media) to continue its commendable efforts should be infuriating to every Bangladeshi.

We should be mortified that fellow countrymen can run such preposterous and slanderous propaganda that the charity founder, who happens to have a Hindu name (whether Kishor Kumar Das is a practising Hindu is another matter), is compelled to tender his resignation and later recant his earlier statement for even more criticism.

Bidyanondo’s current activities include the cheap meal, their Covid-19 assistance, iftar basket and zakat collection. The charity has always had a strong program during the Muslim holy month.

And it has probably been the only organization ready to deal with the coronavirus outbreak, with their custom-made personal protective equipment before anyone had them. Their efforts have been commended and applauded across the country. A number of government agencies have cooperated with them solely because of their efficiency and enthusiastic volunteerism.

Social media has been rife with salacious sectarian rhetoric against this charity for long. First it was said that their cheap meals were laced with sedatives to put children to sleep and traffic them. Of course, that did not stick.

Soon the children found out this was a well-meaning initiative and the food was good and they would practically swarm the food carts. In previous years, their iftar has been said to be laced with cow urine/dung to convert “gullible” Muslims into Hindus. More recent allegations have been even more far-fetched and ludicrous.

It has been said on social media that Bidyanondo is in fact a Hindu missionary (ISKCON) organization funded by India. Even their preparedness for corona outbreak was criticized as a certain indication of nefarious intentions.

It has also been said that through Bidyanondo’s efforts to collect zakat and distribute it to the poor, these Hindu missionaries are collecting these precious funds and smuggling them into India. People have remarked on social media platforms whether the iftar basket from this apparently “Hindu” organization would in fact be acceptable before the Muslim almighty.

There are strings of comments and remarks on social media questioning the authenticity and true intention of a Hindu organization being charitable, solely because it has a Bengali name and a founder who is said to be a Hindu. This had reached such a level that the organization had to issue a statement that intended to “clarify” that the name Bidyanondo, however much “Hindu” it might sound, was actually proposed by a Muslim. That the iftar is prepared by Muslim volunteers.

That Bidyanondo and its founder had to sink to such a level of exasperation only points to a strong need for a law that prohibits and strictly penalizes cyber-bullying. People should not be at liberty to make suggestive remarks with unfounded innuendo.

Their exasperation also points to the growing religious intolerance among Bangladeshis. It is becoming obvious that Bangladesh is increasingly becoming a country of “Muslims” only, where people of other faiths will become second-class citizens while others like atheists and maybe even Ahmadiyyas will be hounded down.

The flagrantly open fundamentalist vitriol on social media and public platforms points to the serious need to strengthen secularism on the social and cultural fronts. The kind of secularism that the prime minister’s father had once dreamed of — but that sadly seems a far cry today.

Tanim Ahmed is Founder and CEO of Omnispace.