New Delhi: India should not remain a silent spectator in Bangladesh, the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) stated Monday while condemning the mob lynching of a Hindu youth in the neighbouring country on blasphemy charges.
With this comment, the Hindu Right group has urged the Narendra Modi-led government to take all possible diplomatic, political, and humanitarian steps to ensure the safety and security of Hindus and other minorities in Bangladesh.
“Bharat has a long and proud tradition of standing with oppressed and persecuted communities across the world. We strongly urged the government to take all possible diplomatic, political, and humanitarian measures,” VHP President Alok Kumar told media persons Monday.
His remarks came days after a mob in Bangladesh’s Mymensingh district lynched 27-year-old Dipu Chandra Das to death Thursday before setting his body on fire.
The VHP, an affiliate of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), has announced organising protests at every “prant” across districts in India against “continued violence” against Hindus in Bangladesh, demanding justice, accountability, and international intervention.
Moreover, Alok Kumar demanded the immediate withdrawal of the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Muhammad Yunus, currently the head of the interim government of Bangladesh. “Any leadership which fails to protect minorities and maintain law and order has no moral right to enjoy international recognition or legitimacy,” he said.
The VHP chief condemned Yunus for giving a state funeral to Sharif Osman Hadi, who had challenged India. “He openly challenged India by sharing a map on Facebook, depicting a so-called ‘Greater Bangladesh’, a provocative vision encompassing India’s seven north-eastern states, West Bengal, and parts of eastern India,” said Alok Kumar. “VHP has no sympathy for such elements.”
“According to reports, Dipu Chandra Das posted that ‘all Gods are the same with different names’. This was interpreted as blasphemy, and for that, he was burnt alive. Such a stand is dangerous as it challenges the very foundations of secularism,” said the VHP chief in his comment on the Bangladesh incident.
He also questioned what he called “a stoic silence on the issue” by self-proclaimed secular forces, as well as sections of the international media and human rights platforms across the world. Citing exiled Bangladeshi author and human rights activist Taslima Nasreen, Alok Kumar said that Das was falsely accused of blasphemy and abandoned by the police responsible for his protection.
“This reflects a complete and deliberate collapse of the rule of law and a grave abdication of state responsibility in Bangladesh. The country is currently passing a grave phase of uncertainty, lawlessness, and anarchy. In this disturbing atmosphere, radical and fundamentalist elements have unleashed unchecked violence against Hindus, Sikhs, and other minority communities,” added the VHP president.
Terming the situation in Bangladesh alarming, the VHP president said it was a matter of serious concern for the entire world and the moral and humanitarian responsibility of the international community to take immediate and effective steps to ensure the safety and protection of the human rights of minorities in Bangladesh.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)
So does the lynching of Muslims in India. Why is he silent then?