NEW DELHI: Sixty-eight prominent Indians including judges, bureaucrats, doctors and senior police officials have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressing their concern over the atrocities against Hindus in Bangladesh as well as the arrest of ISKCON leader Chinmoy Krishna Das.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) also again urged the Bangladesh government to prevent atrocities against Hindus and their places of worship.
"We are writing to express our deep concern regarding the increasing violence, discrimination and persecution being faced by the Hindu minority in Bangladesh. The systematic attacks against Hindus, their religious sites, their properties, and their very dignity are reaching unprecedented levels," wrote former Director General of Police of Jammu and Kashmir Shesh Paul Vaid in an official communiqué which had 68 prominent signatories from across India.
The letter also condemned the way in which ISKCON leader Chinmoy Krishna Das was denied bail and eventually sent to jail in Chittagong.
"The arrest of Chinmoy Krishna Das on fabricated sedition charges is particularly troubling. He was detained simply for organizing a peaceful protest against the ongoing atrocities and advocating for the rights of the Hindu community," the letter said.
The acts of violence and discrimination against Hindus violate their fundamental rights and also undermine the principles of peace, coexistence, and religious freedom that India and Bangladesh have had historically.
Meanwhile, in Bangladesh too, concerns have been expressed on the arrest of Das.
"The sedition charges against Chinmoy Krishna Das are very unfortunate as he like every other Bangladeshi has every right to propagate his views," Professor Nazmul Ahsan Kalimullah told The New Indian Express.
In Parliament on Thursday, the Indian government again called upon the Bangladesh government to ensure the safety and security of Hindus and minorities in their places of worship.
"Several incidents of desecration and damages to Hindu temples and deities in Bangladesh have been reported in the past few months. The Indian government has expressed its concerns about such incidents which includes the attack on a Puja mandap in Tantibazar, Dhaka and the theft at the Jeshoreshwari Kali temple during Durga Puja," said the Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh in Parliament on Thursday.
The primary responsibility for the protection of life and liberty of all citizens of Bangladesh including minorities rests with the Bangladesh government, Singh added.