The August 5 arson at renowned musician and Joler Gaan’s frontman Rahul Ananda's Dhanmondi 32 home was not a targeted attack, his wife Urmila Shukla has said.

She described the incident in detail in a Facebook post on Tuesday afternoon, stating that she wanted to clarify the matter earlier but could not write as she was mentally devastated.

Adjacent to the house of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman which was targeted and torched by miscreants, the 140-year-old Dhanmondi house where Rahul Ananda and his family lived, was also burned. The house had over 3,000 musical instruments—most of which the artist made by himself.

The incident has been highlighted as a “communal attack” in some media reports in India and Bangladesh.

Describing the incident, Shukla wrote: “We heard the shouts of victory march from the crowd outside, and suddenly I saw all the houses behind were on fire. We were instantly disoriented but realized soon that all the houses of (Dhanmondi) 32 had been set on fire.”

“Our house is behind Santoor Restaurant. The three-storey house of our landlord Ainul Haque was the first to be vandalised and set on fire. We did not know what to do when the cheering crowd entered through the Santoor gate and set the restaurant on fire,” she added.

“We went ahead to reason with the miscreants, but they would not hear anything. Some people came forward and tried to talk to the miscreants, but all in vain.”

Shukla stated that one particular individual among the attackers said that it was their 14 years of rage. Rahul and his family were told to leave the area.

“They did not want to burn down our house specifically but wanted to destroy all the houses on road 32. We have lost everything, we are mentally devastated. I hope everyone will understand our state,” she concluded while wishing for a better and united Bangladesh.

The arson attack on Rahul Ananda’s home has been the talk of the town among the netizens in recent times. Several cultural organizations and personalities have expressed their heartfelt grievance over the unbearable loss of the beloved artist and his family while demanding justice against the attack.