Protests denouncing the communal attacks on Hindu temples, idols and properties during Durga Puja celebrations gained momentum as the call for punishing the attackers and the perpetrators got louder yesterday.

Members of the Hindu community and many others demonstrated in different parts of the country, demanding immediate arrest of the culprits. The protesters enforced a half-day hartal in Chattogram and defied section 144 — ban on gatherings — in Noakhali.