Dhaka: On Monday, Gita Rani Mondol was busy clicking selfies with the grand Krishna pandal (shelter) decorated with colourful flowers and garlands and set against the backdrop of beautiful sheer curtains at Dhaka’s Dhakeshwari temple. Looking at her, no one would have been able to tell that, just hours ago, she had been agonising over whether she should come to the temple at all.
Hindus around the world marked the festival of Janmashtami Monday—birth of the Hindu deity Krishna. But in Bangladesh, where anti-Hindu violence broke out after a student movement forced the resignation of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, there was palpable fear.
At least 11 Hindus were killed and 15 temples vandalised across the country in the last two months, according to data from the Hindu organisation Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad.
Still, the Dhakeshwari temple in Dhaka looked vibrant: it was adorned with flowers, wrapped in strings of lights, and covered by colourful tents. Shops selling jewellery, prasad, incense sticks and candles lined the area, while street vendors stood outside, offering bright balloons and toys to children.
It felt like a fair, as many devotees, dressed in festive clothes, lit candles, sang prayers and took pictures—all of this possible because of a long lull in the violence.
Mondol picked her best yellow outfit, to match with her 6-year-old nephew who was dressed as Krishna; put on her best make-up; and new bangles, but till the last minute, she wasn’t sure if she should go to the temple even though the law-and-order situation in Dhaka had largely returned to normal.
She had been glued to the TV all day as she tracked the news. Finally, she said, she decided to step out, leaving her safety up to Krishna.
“I was hesitant because of the Hindus being killed in the last few days. Our families were scared. But our neighbours gave us confidence. I was very excited about the puja, but reluctant to step out. Then we all decided to come and we are glad we did,” she said.
“We still feel that the situation may go out of hand anytime so we really wanted to pray to lord Krishna,” added her sister Shompa Rani said.
But what also gave them confidence is that the interim government has constantly been speaking for protecting the minorities, she added. Additional security had also been deployed across Dhaka with at least two dozen policeman at the temple alone.
On Monday, Bangladesh’s interim government chief, Muhammad Yunus, hosted a reception for the Hindu community where Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad president Bashudeb Dhar, Swami Purnatmananda Maharaj, principal of Dhaka’s Ramkrishna Mission, and other Hindu community leaders, including Kajol Debnath and Monindra Kumar Nath, were in attendance.
“There can’t be any divisions among people in our country. We are equal citizens. The interim government is determined to protect the rights of every citizen of the country,” Yunus was quoted as saying by the state-run BSS news agency.
Bangladesh is a large family where the responsibility of the government is to protect the rights of every citizen, his office quoted him as saying on X (formerly Twitter).
Speaking to ThePrint, Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad’s Dhar said that Yunus told them that all Bangladeshis are members of a single family.
“He said the government will eliminate any sense of communalism. He said we need to create a Bangladesh where every individual can practise their faith without fear. We are extremely happy with this gesture and it instils a sense of confidence in us,” he said.
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‘We are celebrating’
Progya Biswas, a State University of Bangladesh student was ecstatic that she could attend the Geeta Yagya (a rite) at the temple Monday. She said, after what happened, she did not think the situation would normalise so quickly.
“We saw the TV, heard the news, and it was scary. Although nothing happened in the place where I live, there was fear. Our Muslim neighbours had told us that we will be safe, but still there was looming fear. I did not think that we would be able to celebrate Janmashtami,” she said.
She added that this year the crowds were smaller than what the temple usually draws, but it still looked like everything was returning to normal.
Prantike Saha, another devotee, claimed recent events were “blown out of proportion” on social media. Hindus have been living in Bangladesh for years, he said, adding that there had been instances of attacks in the past, but it is more “political” than “a hit job on the minority population”.
“Some incidents of attacks happened but they were more political in nature and the fear was fanned by social media posts. Some Hindus killed were associated with the previous government, some were attacked by mobs and miscreants. I do not believe that it was an attack on us. But yes, since it happened, there is fear,” he said.
He, however, said that the situation will settle in some time. “It will not take more than a month to settle. The interim government has acknowledged what happened and is working on it. So we are happy. For now, we are all celebrating. Happy Janmashtami.”
(Edited by Sanya Mathur)