Last Updated:
Members of the Bangladeshi Hindu community hold banners and chant slogans against violence targeting the country’s minorities during a protest in Dhaka. (Image: AFP)
“We are talking to the government and asking for foolproof safety. We are hopeful this insult and genocide will stop and all temples will be protected like heritage. Safety of minorities is important duty of the government in office,” Indian government sources said
The killing of Hindus and desecration of Hindu temples in Bangladesh have led to protests across the world, from the crisis-hit country to the United States (US). Meanwhile, the Indian government is monitoring the situation, said sources, even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed hope for protection of Hindus as Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus took charge as the head of Bangladesh’s interim government.
Several Hindu temples, households and businesses have been vandalised, and at least two Hindu leaders affiliated with former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League party have been killed in the violence after she was forced to resign and flee the country.
ALSO READ | PM Modi Calls For Protection Of Hindus In Bangladesh, Stresses ‘Shared Aspirations’ As Yunus Takes Charge
“We are talking to the government and asking for foolproof safety. We are hopeful this insult and genocide will stop and all temples will be protected like heritage. Safety of minorities is important duty of the government in office,” Indian government sources said.
My best wishes to Professor Muhammad Yunus on the assumption of his new responsibilities. We hope for an early return to normalcy, ensuring the safety and protection of Hindus and all other minority communities. India remains committed to working with Bangladesh to fulfill the…— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 8, 2024
Media reports have flagged cases of violence against minorities, including the massive vandalism and destruction at popular folk band Joler Gaan’s frontman Rahul Ananda’s residence on Monday, prompting the singer and his family to go into hiding. The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Oikya Parishad, a prominent organisation advocating for minority rights, issued an open letter to Yunus, detailing 205 incidents of persecution across 52 districts since the fall of the Hasina government on August 5.
In the US, the protesters demanded that world bodies take action against the violence. The protest was organized by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), USA. Hindu groups also organised similar protests in the United Kingdom (UK), Finland and Australia. They also gave a memorandum, seeking urgent intervention.
Dhaka also saw a large number of Hindus protesting against the killing of minority Hindus in Bangladesh. Thousands of minority Hindu community members staged massive protest rallies in Bangladesh’s capital and the north-eastern port city of Chittagram on Saturday, the second consecutive day, demanding protection.
The Hindu demonstrators’ rally blocked traffic for over three hours at Shahbagh in the central part of Dhaka.
Thousands of Muslim protestors, including students, also joined them here expressing solidarity for the cause of minorities.
On Saturday, the protesters put out an eight-point charter of demands, which includes establishing special tribunals to expedite trials for those who have persecuted minorities, compensation of victims and immediate enactment of a minority protection law.
With Agency Inputs