Hindu diaspora protests across US, UK over killings, persecution of minorities in Bangladesh

Washington/London: Several members of the Hindu diaspora community staged demonstrations in the United States and the United Kingdom protesting the killing and persecution of Hindus across Bangladesh.

These protests came amid escalating attacks on Hindu communities in Bangladesh, including the recent brutal killing of four members of a Hindu family in Rangpur city.

At a protest rally in Jackson Heights of New York City, the members of the Hindu community raised alarm over the safety and security of Hindus, while calling on the Bangladeshi authorities to take immediate and concrete measures to protect minorities

Speaking at the rally, one of the protestors said, “I believe the time has come for Hindus to stand up and resist. The time has come when we can no longer simply take beatings and hide inside our homes as we did before. We have to defend ourselves in our own way. Symbolic protests alone will not work. We have to resist. Whatever it takes, we have to survive.”

Another speaker launched a scathing attack on the previous Muhammad Yunus-led interim government, accusing Yunus of emboldening mob violence by describing it as “mob justice” and effectively giving it a licence.

“And after receiving that licence, the doors were opened for the criminal elements in society—those who believe in the ideology of the ISI or similar ideologies,” he added

The speaker further said, “Bangladesh has now become a country of corpses. We want to be freed from this situation. Our demand is that the government take the necessary steps to bring an end to this situation.”

Separately, during a demonstration in London, the Hindu community raised slogans against the killing of Hindus in Bangladesh.

They carried placards that read: “ Stop attacks on Hindus”, “Protect Hindu Communities”, “ Hindu lives matter”, “ Stop ongoing persecution of minorities in Bangladesh”.

As violence against minorities continues unabated across Bangladesh, recently a retired Hindu schoolteacher, his wife, daughter and 12-year-old son were brutally murdered in Rangpur city, sparking widespread condemnation.

The deceased were identified as retired Rangpur Zilla School teacher Ganapati Chakraborty, 65; his wife, Pritilata Chakraborty, 50; their daughter, Agami Chakraborty Prarthi, 23; and their son, Priyam Chakraborty, 12.

The incident occurred on August 20, with police recovering the bodies of all four family members two days later, on the night of August 22.

This come against the backdrop of mounting attacks on minorities, particularly Hindus across Bangladesh, that have persisted since the tenure of the former Yunus-led interim government and continue under the current Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) administration.

IANS