Religion in Bangladesh

The final 2022 census recorded 165,158,616 residents. Muslims accounted for 91.08 percent, Hindus 7.96 percent, Buddhists 0.61 percent, Christians 0.30 percent, and followers of other religions 0.06 percent. The Muslim population is predominantly Sunni. Shiite, Ahmadi, Sufi, Baul, Baha'i, animist, and Indigenous faith communities, as well as small atheist groups, form additional parts of the religious landscape. Buddhist communities live particularly in the Chittagong Hill Tracts and the Chattogram area; the share of Hindus is comparatively high in Sylhet. Depending on the group, Indigenous communities combine Buddhist, Christian, or their own forms of belief. Under Article 2A of the Constitution, Islam is the state religion. At the same time, the Constitution grants Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, and other religions equal status and the right to profess, practise, and propagate their faith. Article 12 addresses secularism, the exclusion of communalism and religious persecution, and the prohibition on misusing religion for political favoritism or against other groups. Article 41 also permits religious communities to establish, maintain, and administer their own institutions. Schools may not force students to participate in instruction or ceremonies of another religion. The Ministry of Religious Affairs oversees state grants, religious holidays, Hajj and Umrah matters, and pilgrimage and delegation programs. The Islamic Foundation supports, among other things, mosques, imams, Islamic education, Hajj services, and Zakat, meaning religious obligatory payments for people in need. The Bangladesh Waqf Administration is responsible for permanently dedicated religious endowment (Waqf). An endowment is typically prepared through a deed executed at a land registry office (Sub-Registry), with a precise land description, the endowment category, and information about the administrator or committee; mutation or correction of the land records and review by the Waqf administration, district administration, or an inspector follow. Registration may receive a listing number and an EC number. The prescribed fees are payable at the land registry office. The Ministry of Religious Affairs supports, under certain conditions, mosques, temples, churches, pagodas, Eid prayer grounds, cemeteries, and Hindu cremation grounds (Shmashan). The grant application is free of charge; a target of 90 working days is stated. A certificate or recommendation from the local Chairman, the responsible Upazila-level administrative officer, or a member of parliament may be required. Hindu, Buddhist, and Christian Religious Welfare Trusts support institutions, festivals, education, welfare, scholarships, and the training of priests and monks. Religious education is divided by religious affiliation within the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) into Islamic, Hindu, Buddhist, and Christian subjects. In practice, access to non-Islamic instruction may be limited when a school has no suitable teacher. The formal Islamic education pathway of the Bangladesh Madrasah Education Board runs from Ibtedayee or Furquania through a madrasah qualification roughly at the level of an SSC qualification (Dakhil) and a madrasah qualification roughly at the level of an HSC qualification (Alim), continuing to the Fazil and Kamil stages. Rules for establishing and recognizing private Dakhil and Alim madrasas were regulated in 2025. For the Hajj, the Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, both state and private routes exist. Registration requires, among other things, a pre-registration certificate and a passport; the official Hajj portal offers pilgrim searches, verification of agency licenses, and a complaints channel. A pre-registration deposit of 350,000 BDT was stated for 2026. For 2027, the registration deadline was given as 26 September 2026, the possible start of visas as 28 January 2027, and the start of flights as 8 April 2027. Fees, packages, and quotas change annually and should therefore be checked in the official portal before registration. Umrah should be organized through licensed providers and in accordance with official guidance. Published religious holidays in 2026 include Shab-e-Barat on 4 February, Shab-e-Qadar on 17 March, Jumah-tul-Bidha on 20 March, Eid-ul-Fitr from 19 to 23 March, Buddha Purnima on 1 May, Eid-ul-Azha from 26 to 31 May, Ashura on 26 June, Eid-e-Milad-un-nabi on 26 August, Janmashtami on 4 September, Durga Puja and Bijoya Dashami on 20 and 21 October, and Christmas on 25 December. Islamic dates depend on moon sighting; a public holiday also does not mean that every community observes it in the same way. Religious weddings, divorces, funerals, and other life events are usually accompanied by the respective community and its clergy. Civil birth and death registration, by contrast, is carried out through the Registrar General and the Bangladesh Registration Information System (BDRIS) and is separate from the religious ceremony. For Muslim marriages, the Muslim Marriages and Divorces (Registration) Act 1974 requires registration by a marriage registrar (Nikah Registrar). In a divorce, the husband must under the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance 1961 send a divorce notice (Talaq) to the Chairman and a copy to the wife; in principle, a 90-day waiting and reconciliation period follows. A further marriage requires prior approval from the Arbitration Council. The Hindu Marriage Registration Act 2012 allows registration for documentation, without making a marriage solemnized under Hindu ritual law invalid because it was not registered. The Christian Marriage Act 1872 and the limited statutory route under the Special Marriage Act 1872 also apply. Marriage, divorce, and inheritance therefore differ according to the applicable religion-based family law. According to the reviewed official sources, Bangladesh has no central general procedure for registering a conversion. Conversions are generally accompanied by communities or clergy; Article 41 protects religious practice. Individual converts may nevertheless face family or social pressure, harassment, or social isolation. Article 295A of the Penal Code makes intentional and malicious insult of a religion or religious beliefs punishable; penalties may include up to two years' imprisonment, a fine, or both. Freedom of expression under Article 39 is subject to legal limits. A fatwa is merely a religious opinion and gives local clergy no state authority to impose extrajudicial punishment or decide disputes. The practical enforcement of protection and access is not uniform everywhere, however. Hindu, Buddhist, Christian, Ahmadi, Shiite, and Indigenous communities report harassment, mob violence, attacks on places of worship, and land and property disputes. Following the 2024 political transition, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, or OHCHR, documented attacks and vandalism against minorities; whether an incident was religiously or politically motivated must be assessed case by case. In cases of threats, the police and local administration, as well as the online complaints system of the National Human Rights Commission, or NHRC, may be considered. Security and access conditions in the Chittagong Hill Tracts may differ from the nationwide pattern.