Last Updated on 14/08/2024 by Arun jain
Salman F Rahman, investment adviser to former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, and Anisul Haque, former law minister of Bangladesh, were arrested while fleeing from Sadarghat in Dhaka. The most shocking thing is that they were tied with ropes like criminals. And within an hour they were charged with double murder.
Bangladesh Hindu leaders allege attacks on 278 places
The apex body of Hindus in Bangladesh on Tuesday said that the minority Hindu community has faced attacks and threats at 278 places in 48 districts since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led government on August 5. The apex body termed it an “attack on Hinduism”.
Members of the Bangladesh National Hindu Grand Alliance also pointed to a rise in attacks in recent days and said, “We also have rights in this country, we were born here.” After Prime Minister Hasina left the country, the minority Hindu population faced violence for several days. Their houses and shops were demolished or burnt. Their properties were destroyed.
Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus took charge as the chief adviser of the interim government on August 8. He then met members of the Hindu community at the famous Dhakeshwari temple and urged people to “be patient” before assessing the role of his government. “Due to the changing political scenario, the Hindu community is facing repeated incidents of vandalism, looting, arson, land grabbing and threats to leave the country,” said Palash Kanti Dey, spokesperson and executive secretary of the alliance. “This is not just an attack on individuals but an attack on Hinduism,” Dey alleged during a press conference.
Assurance to raise the issue in cabinet meeting
“As of Monday, there have been attacks and threats against the Hindu community at 278 places in 48 districts. We have conveyed our concerns to Home Affairs Adviser Brigadier General (Retired) M Sakhawat Hussain, who has assured us that these issues will be raised in the next cabinet meeting,” he was quoted as saying by the Dhaka Tribune newspaper.
Dey also stressed that the alliance has placed its demands before various political parties in the last 24 years, but they have not been fulfilled. He said, ‘Now we hope that the interim government will pay attention to our old demands. Apart from this, we support the nationwide movement led by our students.’
‘Increase in attacks on Hindu community’
Coalition president Prabhas Chandra Roy lamented the repeated violence against the Hindu community during political change and said, “Whenever the government changes, the Hindus are the first to be attacked.” He said, “Although such incidents were less in the past, they have increased recently. We want to live in this country with security. We were born here and we have rights in this country.”
They also demanded a speedy trial for the culprits and a public inquiry report, release of a report on minority persecution since 2000, a three-day holiday during Durga Puja and the establishment of a minority ministry, the Dhaka Tribune said. Earlier on Saturday, two Hindu organisations, Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council and Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad, claimed that members of minority communities in Bangladesh faced at least 205 incidents of attacks in 52 districts till the weekend since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led government on August 5.
Meanwhile, while interacting with members of the Hindu community, Yunus said, “Everyone has equal rights. We are all the same people and have the same rights. Do not discriminate between us. Please help us. Be patient and decide later. What we could do and what we could not. Criticise us if we fail.”
Source (PTI) (NDTV) (HINDUSTANTIMES)