|
Round The World
New Delhi, 22 October
2021
Bangladesh
Violence
CONCERNS
IN INDIA
By Dr D.K.
Giri
(Prof.
International Relations, JIMMC)
Violence erupted in
Chittagong district of Bangladesh this 15thOctober, on the 10th
day of Durga puja celebrations. The provocation for this mindless violence
against Hindu devotees was reported insult to the holy Quran which was kept on
the knee of a Hindu goddess. Hundreds of Muslims attacked Hindu temples and
homes leaving six people dead, over 100 injured and dozens of homes destroyed. The
police, however, swung into action and arrested 450 people at the time writing.
The violence during
Durga Puja is one communal riot after a decade of peace and harmony under the
reign of Awami League, led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Although,
Bangladesh observers would contend that this is part of a pattern of recent
attacks on Hindus in the neighbouring country. The attack is usually fuelled by
hate speeches on social media, running counter to the values of the
Constitution. About 3600 attacks on Hindus have taken place since 2013. Indigenous
Hindus have been targets of organised hate, discrimination and violence.
Consequently, Hindus as a minority population has decreased from 28 per cent in
1940s to 9 per cent now.
The pattern of
attacks consists of the following: something fake and fabricated is posted on
the Facebook and marked as insulting to Islam by others. Then a group of people
from majority Muslim community would attack a particular spot inhabited by
minority Hindus. Attackers are hardly punished. Thus, the culture of impunity
is the major reason behind such attacks. In earlier times, the victims could
not even lodge a protest, now, one can do so. But no action is taken on the complaint.
There have been
serious reactions from United Nations and the United States, both government
and non-governmental agencies. Top UN officials have condemned the killing of
Hindus. The US Department Spokesperson said, “Freedom of religion or belief is
a human right. Every person around the world, regardless of their religious
affiliation and belief should feel safe and supported to celebrate important
holidays.” The State Department condemns the recent reports of attacks on the
Hindu community in Bangladesh, added the spokesman.
A US based advocacy
group called Hindu PACT has condemned the killing and has demanded action
against the perpetrators. Mia Seppo, the UN Resident Coordinator in Bangladesh
has called upon the Hasina government to ensure protection of minorities and
order an impartial probe to the incident. The controversial writer Tasleema
Nasreen has condemned the incident in possible strongest tone and has stated,
“Hindu and Buddhist in Bangladesh have become third class citizens. The anti-Hindu
mindset is alarming. Bangladesh has become a ‘jihadistan’.”She argues that
Muslims want Hindu to leave the country so that they can grab their land.
As per the reactions
from India, the mercurial BJP MP Subramaniam Swamy questioned the ruling BJP on
its silence over the recent spate of attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh and has
demanded that unless the violence stops, India should invade Bangladesh. This
is bizarre as the Bangladesh Prime Minister is a friend of India and she has
forthrightly condemned the violence. She has even participated in a march
against the perpetrators of the recent violence.
The official reaction
from South Block is that the Indian High Commission was in close contact with
the authorities in Dhaka. The MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi assured that
government is keeping a close watch. He said, “We have seen some reports of
attacks on religious gathering in Bangladesh. We note that Bangladesh
government has strongly reacted to it.” He assured that minorities were being
protected by para-military force deployed in 22 districts after the killing of
Hindus.
Notably, the Vishwa
Hindu Parishad condemned the attacks on temples in Bangladesh and demanded
strict action against the perpetrators as well as protection of Hindus. In a
statement, VHP General Secretary Milind Parande urged the Bangladesh government
to duly compensate the victims for their loss of life and property. He added
that the government of India as well as the global community should pressurise
Bangladesh government to take action appropriate action to prevent recurrence
of such violence.
The reactions in Bangladesh
have been encouraging. Hundreds of people, the progressive Muslim protested in
a rally in Chittagong, the epicentre of recent violence. The mob violence began
in Comilla, Hajigang town in Chittagong district. The biggest Hindu
organisation, International Society of Krishna Consciousness (ISCKON) backed by
students of Dhaka University blocked a major intersection in Dhaka demanding
justice.
The Awami League, the
ruling party also is planning a series of rallies. The General Secretary of the
party, MahabubulAlam Hanif said that the party workers were planning to conduct
peace rallies across the country over the next two weeks. He emphasised, “The
panic has to be removed. Out of 168 million people in Bangladesh, 10 per cent
is Hindus.”
So, the religious
violence is a result of hate speech, religious aggression and polarisation
amongst the communities. This has been increasing in recent years in South Asia.
When we talk about violent extremism, much as we think about guns and wars, we will
also have to consider other forms of violence, such as the use of hate speech,
discrimination, xenophobia and homophobia that we see in the digital space as
well.
According to a UNDP
report, South Asia has experienced highest level of violent extremism based on
religion in the world. Such violence needs to be prevented for the sake of
peace, security and development of citizens across South Asia. The
majority-minority dichotomy is perniciously seen across the countries in South
Asia. Bangladesh or India for that matter is no exception. The impact of the
legislation, CAA in 2019 had widespread consequences in Bangladesh. Remember,
12 people were killed in protest against Modi’s visit to Dhaka earlier this
year.
There is no evidence
to link the developments in India vis-à-vis Muslims to the recent violence
against Hindus in Bangladesh. As has been said, the hounding, hunting and
harassment of Hindus has been taking place in Bangladesh for a long time; the
dramatic reduction of Hindu population testifies this assumption. Although,
Sheikh Hasina has an India-friendly approach, the Islamic radicalisation is
beyond her grip.
Both governments of
India and Bangladesh, as indeed the civil society groups should work in
collaboration to reduce the impact of radicalisation as well as polarisation of
communities. Only in inter-country harmony and solidarity, peace and security
can be preserved and development promoted. The violence by handful of
miscreants should not derail this long-term perspective on development. The
violence of last week is a pointer towards deterioration of situation in
Bangladesh and its repercussion in India. It should be treated as a writing on
the wall and both governments should put their minds and energies together to
arrest this downturn. ---INFA
(Copyright, India
News & Feature Alliance)
|
Archives 
