You’re probably right, this is the effects of the USSR that we are seeing. Funnily enough, the USSR was actually more cautious of oppressing Muslims too much compared to Christians, out of fear of severe backlash. Which is why the USSR was a little more lenient with the Muslim areas.
Yes, I think to a big extent they were more directly brutal with trying to stamp out Christianity. Yes I don't think the USSR directly went house to house saying "renounce your Islamic faith or else" but rather they tried to subtly make people less and less religious. I think many Central Asians in those days, they were deprived of having access to Islamic education. I read a book on it (Islam After Communism) and I think people genuinely didn't even know how to pray.
the Soviets I think did what the Democrat party tries to do, what China tries to do, what France tries to do, what the West in general tries to do- they tried to make Islam into a cultural identity rather than a dīn. so from what I read... the soviets would encourage cultural practices. they would actually support genuine local culture like clothing and maybe some customs and things like that. and it's the same with the West. go walk around wearing cultural clothing all you like- but it's your beliefs they target.
so all of this, yes, I think it flows directly from the Soviet times. the whole concept of Ataturk like secular nationalism... being used as a cover for an anti-Islam agenda.... I think in places like Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan things continued as before