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Inside Bangladesh: Two More Monks Arrested, Journalist Heckled by India-Baiters

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Manas Dasgupta

NEW DELHI, Dec 1: In continued action against Hindu community, the Bangladesh police arrested two more ISKCON monks who had gone to deliver food to the arrested monk Chinmoy Krishna Das in Chattogram jail while a senior journalist was mobbed and heckled by India-baiters in Dhaka accusing her of doing everything to “make Bangladesh a part of India.”

The mob surrounded Bangladesh journalist Munni Saha in Dhaka on Saturday night and accused her of spreading misinformation and “doing everything to make Bangladesh a part of India.” Ms Saha was heckled as she kept saying, “This is also my country.” Eventually, a police team came and took her into custody.

The incidents come following a flurry of attacks on the Hindu community in Bangladesh in recent months which also included vandalisation of temples and idols of deities. On November 25, Chinmoy Krishna Das was arrested on sedition charges alleging disrespect to the national flag. He was also denied bail by the court, drawing a sharp reaction from India which urged the Yunus government to ensure the safety of minorities.

According to reports in Bangladesh media, Ms Saha was wanted in a case linked to a student’s death during the recent anti-reservation protests that led to its former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s ouster. Police said Ms Saha was rescued from Dhaka’s Kawran Bazar area, where a mob had surrounded her.

Rezaul Karim Mallik, a senior officer of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, said “People handed her over to the police. She suffered a panic attack. We have released her after considering her health condition and the fact that she is a woman journalist.” Ms Saha has been asked to seek bail from court and comply with police summons in the future.

In a video that has now gone viral, Ms Saha is seen surrounded by a mob. A voice is heard accusing her of misguiding people regarding the 2009 Bangladesh Rifles mutiny that claimed 57 lives. “You are doing everything you can to make this country a part of India. The blood of students is on your hands,” the journalist is told as she nods in denial.

“How can you be a citizen of this country and harm this country,” she is told. Ms Saha responds, “How have I harmed? This is also my country.” The 55-year-old journalist is the former news head of Bengali channel ATN News. After the Sheikh Hasina administration was toppled, she and several other journalists were charged with crimes against humanity.

The heckling of Ms Saha comes amid concerns over the condition of minority Hindus in Bangladesh after the regime change. Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari was arrested after a Hindu community’s protest demanding legal protection and a ministry for minority affairs. The Hindu priest, who was earlier associated with ISKCON, faces a sedition case, allegedly for his remarks on the targeting of Hindus.

ISKCON has now said two more monks, Adipurush Shyam Das and Ranganath Das Brahmachari, have been arrested after they met Chinmoy Krishna Das. The vice-president of ISKCON Kolkata also said rioters had vandalised the ISKCON centre in Bangladesh.

Following Hasina’s ouster, an interim government helmed by Grameen Bank founder and Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. Over the past few months, multiple reports of minority Hindus being targeted in Bangladesh have emerged. In the aftermath of the priest’s arrest, India expressed concern over the rise of “extremist rhetoric, increasing incidents of violence and provocation” in Bangladesh.

The Ministry of External Affairs said India has consistently raised the issue of targeted attacks on Hindus and other minorities with the Bangladesh government. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal has urged the interim government in Bangladesh to take steps to protect minorities.

International Society of Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) Kolkata’s Vice-President and spokesperson Radharaman Das questioned the move to arrest the monks and said ISKCON devotees in over 150 countries would gather to chant and pray for the safety of Bangladeshi minorities.

“In over 150 countries and countless cities and towns, millions of ISKCON devotees worldwide will come together this Sunday to pray and chant for the safety and security of Bangladeshi minorities. Please join your local #ISKCON temple or congregation. Hare Krishna!” Radharaman Das tweeted.

Reacting to the plight of minorities in Bangladesh, Governing Body Commissioner (GBC), ISKCON, Gauranga Das said, “Today, the kirtan that we organise every Sunday – it will be done for the safety and protection of all the devotees of Bangladesh – for all the Hindus and minorities there.”

Union Minister and West Bengal BJP chief Sukanta Majumdar condemned the arrest calling it “against the values of justice.” He sought their immediate release and advocated raising voice for religious freedom. “Saddened to hear about the arrest of another ISKCON monk, Brahmachari Shyam Das, by the Bangladesh Police. He was detained while visiting Chinmoy Krishna Prabhu, who was recently taken into custody. Such actions against peaceful religious figures and the Hindu minority in Bangladesh are deeply concerning. This goes against the values of justice and harmony that we all stand for,” he tweeted.

“I urge the Bangladesh Government to release these monks immediately and ensure the protection of minority communities. It is important for all of us to speak up for justice and religious freedom,” the Minister added.

The ordeal narrated by a visitor to Bangladesh from neighbouring West Bengal sums up the situation prevailing in that country. Sayan Ghosh, a tourist hailing from West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas, was brutally attacked by a group of people while visiting a friend in Bangladesh on November 23. He somehow managed to return back to India with injuries on his head and face after he was refused admission to a hospital.

“On the day when I was supposed to return, my friend asked me to accompany him to the market. A Muslim group came and demanded to know about my home and religion in the market. When they came to know that I was an Indian and a Hindu, they dragged me and attacked me with a knife. They snatched my phone and money and struck my head with a rock. My friend tried to stop them and they snatched his phone as well. After they fled, I called an ambulance and they also questioned my identity,” he said.

Sayan further said it took him four hours to reach the hospital, after which it denied him admission. He was also turned away from a police station and a private nursing home. Additionally, some people reportedly came to his friend’s house and threatened them. “I somehow managed to come back. I request the Indian government to please help those who are stuck there,” he added.

His father Sukanto Ghosh told the media that in lieu of reports of terrorism and anti-Hindu activities in the neighbouring country, he had earlier warned Sayan not to go to Bangladesh. Sukanto said his son was in a state of deep shock after the incident and his family was worried and planned to inform the High Commissioner about the attack.

In retaliation, many hospitals in West Bengal are refusing to provide health services to Bangladeshi patients. The JN Ray Hospital in Kolkata announced the move as a mark of protest against the atrocities against the Hindus in Bangladesh. The latest in this list is Tripura’s ILS Hospital which declared not to extend its services to Bangladeshis.

Several protesters of Sanatani Unity Forum were injured while security forces resorted to lathicharge to prevent members of the forum from moving towards the Sutarkhandi Indo Bangladesh international border gate at Sribhumi district of south Assam. The forum had organised ‘Chalo Bangladesh’ against the atrocities on Hindus in the neighbouring country. Several security personnel too suffered injuries in the scuffle.