Unrest in Bangladesh, Protests spill over to India

way2barak, Dec 23: Several prominent Hindu groups, including the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal, held protests outside the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi on Tuesday afternoon. The groups were seeking justice for Dipu Chandra Das, a Hindu man killed over blasphemy allegations in Bangladesh’s Mymensingh recently.

Similar protest attempts were seen in Kolkata as a crowd of Hindu activists tried to march towards the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in the city, but were stopped.

In further escalation of a strain in bilateral ties between India and Bangladesh, Dhaka summoned Pranay Verma, the Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh.

Dipu Chandra Das’s killing has triggered massive outrage in India, with people protesting outside the Bangladesh High Commission in Kolkata. They have reportedly warned of further agitation, including border blockades. Not only in Kolkata, protests also took place outside Bangladesh’s assistant high commission in Tripura, by the Tipra Motha Party and other groups.

After the protests outside its diplomatic missions in India, Bangladesh reportedly suspended visa services at the High Commission in New Delhi and missions in Tripura and Siliguri, citing security concerns.

India also reacted to the violence across the border, and condemned the killing of the Hindu man in Mymensingh. The country raised concerns over the condition of minorities in Bangladesh and also summoned Bangladesh High Commissioner Riaz Hamidullah. As reported by HT earlier, the summons were issued over a speech by National Citizen Party (NCP) leader Hasnat Abdullah in which he claimed that Bangladesh could shelter separatist forces from India and sever the country’s seven northeastern states.

United Nations Secretary General Antionio Guterres on Tuesday condemned the ongoing violence in Bangladesh, including the killing of a Hindu man in Mymensingh. The UN chief’s spokesperson expressed concern over the violence and said that people who don’t belong to the ‘majority’ need to feel safe in all countries.