Protect all minorities, India tells B’desh after arrest of Hindu priest
India expressed concern over the arrest of Hindu leader Chinmoy Krishna Das in Bangladesh, leading to protests and violence, while Bangladesh defended its actions.
India on Tuesday expressed “deep concern” over the arrest of prominent Hindu leader Chinmoy Krishna Das in Bangladesh, as protests erupted in multiple cities following his detention on sedition charges and one of the lawyers representing him was killed in clashes.
Das, who heads the Bangladesh Sammilit Sanatan Jagran Jote and has been leading rallies demanding security for the Hindu minority, was arrested at Dhaka airport on Monday while travelling to Chattogram. A magistrate court denied him bail on Tuesday.
“We have noted with deep concern the arrest and denial of bail to Shri Chinmoy Krishna Das,” India’s ministry of external affairs said in a statement, linking the incident to “multiple attacks on Hindus and other minorities by extremist elements in Bangladesh”.
Bangladesh reacted sharply to India’s statement, expressing “utter dismay and deep sense of hurt” while maintaining that Das’s arrest had been “misconstrued by certain quarters.” In a strongly worded press release, the Bangladesh foreign ministry said such “unfounded statements not only misrepresent facts but also stand contrary to the spirit of friendship and understanding between the two neighboring countries.”
The government also defended its record on protecting minorities, citing the “peaceful observance of Durga Puja throughout Bangladesh only last month” while asserting that its judiciary was “fully independent” in handling Das’s case.
The arrest also sparked violent protests in Chattogram, where hundreds of Das’s supporters surrounded a police van carrying him, forcing it to stop for over an hour, AP reported.
Security forces fired tear gas to disperse the crowd after protesters pelted stones at them. Television footage showed Muslim counter-protesters joining security officials in chasing Hindu demonstrators.
“A Muslim lawyer defending Das was killed amid protests outside the court (in Chattogram),” said police officer Liaquat Ali.
When Das was being escorted back to prison from court, more than 2,000 supporters surrounded the van, blocking it for over two hours, the police commissioner Hasib Aziz, said.
“They went on a rampage, throwing bricks at us. To disperse the crowd, we had to fire tear gas. No one was seriously injured, but one of our constables was hurt,” Aziz said.
His supporters also held demonstrations in capital Dhaka.
Das faces sedition charges filed in October after allegedly disrespecting Bangladesh’s national flag during a rally in Chattogram, more commonly known as Chittagong. The protests have gained momentum since former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina fled the country in August following a mass uprising.
“It is unfortunate that while the perpetrators of these incidents remain at large, charges should be pressed against a religious leader presenting legitimate demands through peaceful gatherings,” the MEA statement said, referring to “documented cases of arson and looting of minorities’ homes and business establishments.”
Bangladesh’s Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, which supports religious minorities, condemned the arrest of Brahmachari.
Das had formerly been a member of the more mainstream International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), commonly called the Hare Krishna movement, before joining the new group.
Tensions have simmered in Bangladesh, where Muslims comprise 91% of the population, since an interim government took power. While authorities maintain that threats to Hindus have been exaggerated, minority groups report increased attacks.
In Dhaka, clashes broke out Monday night when a mob armed with sticks attacked Hindu protesters at Shahbagh intersection near Dhaka University, according to local media reports.
India urged Bangladesh to “ensure the safety and security of Hindus and all minorities, including their right of freedom of peaceful assembly and expression.”
The interim government, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, views the Hindu rallies as potentially destabilising and aimed at rehabilitating Hasina’s secular Awami League party, which is seen as a protector of minorities, the AP added.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Independence Day speech on August 15 this year raised the issue of the targeting of Hindus in the neighbouring country. “As a neighbouring country, I can understand the concern regarding whatever has happened in Bangladesh. I hope the situation there becomes normal soon,” he said while addressing the nation from the Red Fort.
The following day, he spoke with Yunus, who at the time gave an assurance the interim government “would prioritise protection, safety and security of Hindus and all minority groups in Bangladesh”, according to a readout from Dhaka.
