The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), a Hindu right wing organisation, had on Thursday met the Bangladesh Assistant High Commissioner (AHC) at Agartala, Tripura to convey its concern over the recent communal violence in the neighbouring country against Hindus.
A series of communal clashes broke out on October 13 after a rumoured video of a Durga Puja in Comilla of Bangladesh, where the deity was shown standing over Islam’s holy book, The Quran, made rounds that allegedly irked the Muslims — majority there — to attack Durga Pujas and commit arson in several parts of the country in which six, from both sides, died so far, while several were injured. Though no attacks, but social media is seething with condemnation of the incidents from several sections of people in India.
A delegation of the VHP on Thursday met the Bangladesh Assistant High Commissioner (AHC) in Agartala Mohammad Jobayed Hosen and urged him to request his government to ensure action against those who attacked the minorities, vandalised Durga Puja pandals and properties belonging to the non-Muslim families.
VHP leader Sankar Sarkar told Hosen that the Hindu temples are being vandalized, the religious deities are broken, the Hindus including Sadhus are being brutally killed and there are religious attacks on Hinduism in many areas of Bangladesh.
Through Hosen, the organisation that claims to be the protector of Hindus in India sent a letter to the Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina urging the same.
VHP has been raising protests at several parts of the country, mostly in the states that shares border with Bangladesh — Assam, Tripura and West Bengal — condemning the attacks.
The Tripura state Secretary of Communist Party of India-Marxists (CPI-M), Jitendra Chaudhury, despite their ideological differences with the VHP, also raised their voice against the attacks on Hindu minorities in Bangladesh.
“We believe that the Bangladesh government would take strict action against those who attacked and vandalized the houses and properties of minorities,” said Chaudhury, who is also the central committee member of the Left party.
In a separate event, 13 mass and social organisations also on Thursday jointly met Bangladesh AHC demanding full protection of the minorities in Bangladesh and punishment of the goons.
Because of the violence targeting minorities across the border, a three-day film festival of the Bangladesh government in Agartala, which was scheduled to commence on Thursday, has been postponed.
Meanwhile, Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb also earlier urged the Bangladesh government to protect the lives, properties, and religious places of the minorities in that country.
Many organisations, intellectuals, political parties, and NGOs in Assam and Tripura have condemned the recent attacks on people belonging to the Hindu community in Bangladesh, besides organising protest rallies against the communal violence in the neighbouring country.
They have met the Bangladesh Assistant High Commissioners in Agartala and Guwahati and urged them to request their government to ensure action against those who attacked the minorities, vandalised Durga Puja pandals, and properties belonging to the non-Muslim families.
As a result of the violence, that the Bangladesh media house reports as “worst episodes of communal unrest in over a decade”, during the Durga Puja festival, 71 cases have been filed, a Bangladesh police spokesperson told the media.
According to Bangladesh media, at least 450 people have been arrested as of last Tuesday.
As precautionary measures, Dhaka — Bangladesh capital — has strengthened police presence in a number of districts like Chittagong, Narsingdi, Comilla, and Munshiganj that are known for historic Durga puja celebrations
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