'Worst-Ever Attack On Hindus': Ex-Diplomat, Former IB Chief In Civil Society Group That Slams Bangladesh’s Yunus Govt

Last Updated:December 06, 2024, 22:23 IST

Supported by the RSS and other organisations, the civil society group will stage a symbolic protest march to the Bangladesh embassy in Delhi on December 10, which is also coinciding with Human Rights Day

Activists from the Hindu community stage a protest over alleged atrocities on Hindus in Bangladesh, in Agartala. (File image: PTI)

In a striking and rare display of civil society movement, a section of retired bureaucrats, including former director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) Rajiv Jain and ex-diplomat Veena Sikri, condemned the Bangladeshi interim government for its alleged inaction against attacks on Hindus and other minorities. Labelling the situation as “mobocracy," they accused Bangladesh of adopting tactics that are similar to Pakistan’s way of committing atrocities on its minority population.

Supported by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and other organisations, the civil society group will stage a symbolic protest march to the Bangladesh embassy in Delhi on December 10, which is also coinciding with Human Rights Day, to draw attention to the “systemic atrocities against Hindus" in the neighbouring country. The protest is likely to reflect a broader concern over the deteriorating conditions of religious minorities in Bangladesh, said the civil society members.

‘Pakistan playbook’

Addressing the media, during a programme in Delhi on Friday, civil society members and retired bureaucrats, including Rajiv Jain and Veena Sikri, drew attention to what they describe as “the worst-ever attacks on Hindu and other minorities" in Bangladesh under the caretaker government led by chief adviser Muhammad Yunus. Citing documented incidents, as published in several Bangladeshi newspapers, Sikri said, “These are not hearsay incidents. Between September 12 and now, there have been 1,068 attacks, including personal assaults, killings, abductions, and destruction of properties." Sikri also served as the high commissioner of India in Bangladesh.

The instances of rampant violence during Durga Puja, including attacks on Hindu temples and the Roman Catholic Church in Dhaka, highlighted the interim government’s failure to maintain law and order. Sikri accused the caretaker government led by Yunus of failing to control the mob frenzy that had engulfed the whole nation.

She added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on August 8, wrote to Yunus, urging him to prioritise the security of minorities. Despite Yunus’s assurance on August 16 through a phone call to the PM, violence against Hindus continued unabated. “According to the media reports as published in Bangladesh, around 400 police stations were attacked, arms were looted, and peaceful rallies by Hindus demanding their rights back across cities like Chattogram and Rangpur were targeted," said Sikri, adding that the interim government had no constitutional right to reform or take decisive action. “The sole mandate of the interim government was to organise elections and ensure a peaceful transition."

Stating that the atrocities extended to other minority communities including the Chakmas and other hill tribes, Sikri said, “This is nothing short of a Pakistan playbook being implemented in the present Bangladesh."

‘Mob justice and targeted incarcerations’

Rajiv Jain, who retired as the director of IB in 2019, highlighted the deteriorating legal environment, citing the resignation of the members of the Bangladesh Human Rights Commission. Jain also served as a member of the Human Rights Commission between June 2021 and June 2024.

Citing the incarceration of 116 Hindu lawyers in Chattogram on murder charges, with local bar associations refusing to defend them and an arrested monk, the retired bureaucrats said that the current situation in Bangladesh was not only a breakdown of law and order but similar to mob justice disguised as governance.

Jain pointed out that even the Bangladesh Human Rights Commission failed to act, with its officials resigning en masse on November 27. “The commission’s resignation speaks volumes about the state’s failure to protect its minorities," he added.

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