Rallies condemn atrocities against minorities in B’desh

Prominent BJP leaders and Hindu priests participated in the marches and urged the interim government in Bangladesh headed by Muhammad Yunus to take strict action against assailants

Mumbai: On the occasion of Human Rights Day on Monday, Sakal Hindu Samaj and other Hindu and Buddhist outfits organised marches in several cities across Maharashtra to protest against atrocities on minorities in Bangladesh. Prominent BJP leaders and Hindu priests participated in the marches and urged the interim government in Bangladesh headed by Muhammad Yunus to take strict action against assailants.

In Mumbai, the Bhartiya Bhikkhu Sangh, comprised of Buddhist monks, organised a protest at the Gateway of India. (Anshuman Poyrekar/ Hindustan Times)

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray had recently criticised the Narendra Modi-led government’s stand on alleged atrocities against Hindus and other minorities in Bangladesh. The marches on Monday – called ‘Hindu Nyaya Yatra’ in most places – sought to counter the criticism and corner the opposition.

Several thousand people participated in marches in Nandurbar, Partur in Jalna district, Parali and Majalgaon in Beed district, and Purna and Manwath in Parbhani district, wearing saffron caps and mufflers and raising slogans against attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh.

In Purna, protestors burnt an effigy of Muhammad Yunus. BJP MLA and former minister Babanrao Lonikar participated in the march at Partur, while former BJP MP Sujay Vikhe Patil participated in the march at Ahilyanagar (formerly Ahmednagar). In Nagpur, the march coursed through all six assembly sgements under the Nagpur Lok Sabha constituency.

Ramgiri Maharaj, chief of Sadguru Gangagiri Maharaj Sansthan, led the march at Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar. Former minister Atul Save, who participated in the march to the district collector’s office, said, “I condemn the attacks on Hindus and Buddhists in Bangladesh. Such incidents have been rising.”

Ramgiri Maharaj demanded that Hindus from Bangladesh must be given shelter in India. “On November 23, people in Maharashtra saw what happens when Sanatani people unite,” he said, referring to the BJP-led Mahayuti coalition’s thumping victory in the assembly polls. “We can also elect the president of America. Attacks on Hindus will not be tolerated.”

In Mumbai, the Bhartiya Bhikkhu Sangh, comprised of Buddhist monks, organised a protest at the Gateway of India.

“All communities contributed to the liberation of Bangladesh (in 1971). The Bangladesh government should look into atrocities against Buddhists, Jains and Hindus and take strict action against the attackers,” said Bhikkhu Viratna Mahathero.