RELIGION

Bangladeshi Muslim hardliners seek removal of Justice statue

Associated Press
Published | Updated

Supporters and sympathizers of the hardline Hefazat-e-Islam participate in a protest rally demanding a Lady Justice statue be removed from the Supreme Court complex in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Friday, Feb. 24, 2017. The statue of a woman holding a scale and sword in her hands was installed in December outside the court building. The sculpture is wrapped in a sari, a Bangladeshi revision of the usual representation, the Greek goddess Themis blindfolded and clad in a gown. (AP Photo/A.M. Ahad) (The Associated Press)

Supporters and sympathizers of the hardline Hefazat-e-Islam participate in a protest rally demanding a Lady Justice statue be removed from the Supreme Court complex in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Friday, Feb. 24, 2017. The statue of a woman holding a scale and sword in her hands was installed in December outside the court building. The sculpture is wrapped in a sari, a Bangladeshi revision of the usual representation, the Greek goddess Themis blindfolded and clad in a gown. (AP Photo/A.M. Ahad) (The Associated Press)

Supporters and sympathizers of the hardline Hefazat-e-Islam participate in a protest rally demanding a Lady Justice statue be removed from the Supreme Court complex in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Friday, Feb. 24, 2017. The statue of a woman holding a scale and sword in her hands was installed in December outside the court building. The sculpture is wrapped in a sari, a Bangladeshi revision of the usual representation, the Greek goddess Themis blindfolded and clad in a gown. (AP Photo/A.M. Ahad) (The Associated Press)

Thousands of people have marched in Bangladesh's capital demanding a Lady Justice statue be removed from the Supreme Court complex.

The statue of a woman holding a scale and sword was installed in December in an open area between the building's entrance and the courtrooms.

Lady Justice is often depicted as a Greek goddess, but Islamists oppose idol worship and consider the statue anti-Islamic.

Supporters and sympathizers of the hardline Hefazat-e-Islam group joined the protest in Dhaka's Baitul Mokarram mosque after Friday's weekly prayer.

Junaid Al Habib, a leader of the Hefazat-e-Islam, said a mass movement across the country would occur if Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government did not meet protesters' demand immediately.

Bangladesh is a Muslim-majority country ruled by secular laws.