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Can’t brush aside attacks on minorities in Bangladesh; 2,900 documented cases: India
India said the “unremitting hostility against minorities”, including Hindus, Christians and Buddhists, at the hands of extremists is a matter of grave concern
NEW DELHI: India on Friday expressed grave concern at the “unremitting hostility” against minority communities in Bangladesh and reiterated its call for those responsible for the lynching of a Hindu man named Dipu Chandra Das to be brought to justice, reflecting fresh tensions created by anti-India rhetoric from the neighbouring country.
India-Bangladesh relations have cratered since the creation of the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus in August 2024, and tensions have been exacerbated in recent days after protests in Bangladesh over the killing of radical student leader Sharif Osman Hadi took on an anti-India hue. Both sides have called in each other’s envoys to the foreign ministry to lodge formal protests over developments that have impacted bilateral ties.
“The unremitting hostility against minorities in Bangladesh, including Hindus, Christians and Buddhists, at the hands of extremists is a matter of grave concern. We condemn the recent gruesome killing of a Hindu youth in Mymensingh and expect that the perpetrators of the crime would be brought to justice,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told a weekly media briefing.
He was referring to the December 18 lynching of Dipu Chandra Das, who was beaten to death by a mob after being accused of blasphemy. Jaiswal replied to another question about the killing of a Hindu member of a criminal gang by a mob in Rajbari on Wednesday, saying India’s position on the security of minorities in Bangladesh is well known.
Jaiswal noted that more than 2,900 incidents of violence against minorities, including cases of killings, arson and land grab, had been documented by independent sources during the tenure of the interim government in Dhaka. “These incidents cannot be brushed aside as mere media exaggerations or dismissed as political violence,” he said.
Bangladesh’s interim government has often rejected India’s criticism of attacks on minorities by describing them as exaggerated media reports or cases of political violence directed against members of the Awami League, the party of former premier Sheikh Hasina, who is currently in self-exile in India.
Jaiswal referred to instances of anti-India rhetoric witnessed in recent days during protests across Bangladesh over the murder of Hadi, whose killers are yet to be traced by law enforcement, and said: “We have rejected the false narrative that has been projected in Bangladesh.”
Several Bangladeshi student leaders and politicians had claimed, without furnishing evidence, that Hadi’s killers had sneaked into India before police officials said they didn’t know the whereabouts of the assailants.
The law and order and security situation in Bangladesh is “the responsibility of the government of Bangladesh and to portray a narrative where things go in some other direction is completely false and we reject that”, Jaiswal said.
Jaiswal responded to another question about the return of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leader Tarique Rahman to Dhaka after 17 years in self-imposed exile in the UK, saying that this development should be seen in the context of India’s call for free, fair, and inclusive elections in the neighbouring country.
“India stands for strengthening our ties with the people of Bangladesh. We favour peace and stability in Bangladesh and we… stand for free, fair, inclusive and participatory elections in Bangladesh, which [has] to be held in a peaceful atmosphere,” he said.
Asked about the interim government’s ban on the activities of the Awami League, which has barred the party from taking part in the general election to be held on February 12, Jaiswal said: “India stands for free, fair and inclusive elections in Bangladesh. Obviously, that means all the elements, all the persuasions who are there, should participate in that.”
