'Detention Without Reason Worrisome': Govt Sources On Hindu Leader's Arrest In Bangladesh

Last Updated:November 25, 2024, 23:29 IST

Sources said the Centre has time and again advised Hindu leaders in Bangladesh to remain vigilant about their own safety. The Indian embassy has not received any information on the arrest of the Hindu leader

Bangladesh police arrested Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari, a leader of the Hindu group Sammilita Sanatani Jote, from the Hazrat Shahjalal Airport area in Dhaka on November 25. (Image: @MumbaichaDon/X)

India has expressed concerns over the arrest of a Hindu leader in Bangladesh, amid rising violence against minority communities. Detention without a reason is worrisome as there is no properly elected government at this point in time, sources told CNN-News18.

Bangladesh police on Monday arrested Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari, a leader of the Hindu group Sammilita Sanatani Jote, from the Hazrat Shahjalal Airport area in Dhaka. But, the authorities have not given a reason behind this arrest.

Bengali-language newspaper Prothom Alo reported that Das was a leader of ISKCON, which recently expelled him.

According to sources, the central government has time and again advised Hindu leaders in Bangladesh to remain vigilant about their own safety. The Indian embassy has sought information on the arrest of the Hindu leader, but has not received any information.

Sources said they know that he was taken away from the airport to a detective branch office in Dhaka. The Muhammad Yunus-led interim government is expected to respect Hindu sentiments and the work of ISKCON across the world, they said.

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“Das was detained in line with a request from (regular police)," spokesperson of the Police’s Detective Branch Rezaul Karim said, adding that he will now be handed over to the concerned police station for subsequent legal procedure.

Leaders of ISKCON in Bangladesh were not immediately available for comments, but the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council condemned the detention, saying it could affect the country’s image abroad.

Citing Sanatani Jagran Jote’s key organiser, Gaurang Das Brahmachari, Bdnews24 news portal said Das was supposed to go to Chattogram by air from Dhaka.

On October 30, a case was filed against 19 people, including Das, at Chattogram’s Kotwali police station, accusing them of disrespecting Bangladesh’s national flag in Chattogram’s New Market area during a rally of the Hindu community.

Hundreds of people, meanwhile, from the Hindu community took to the streets at the Cheragi Pahar intersection in the port city, demanding the immediate release of Das. Similarly, the Hindu community members in the capital blocked the Shahbagh intersection late in the evening, protesting the arrest.

Dhaka, Bangladesh

News world 'Detention Without Reason Worrisome': Govt Sources On Hindu Leader's Arrest In Bangladesh