External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to brief Parliament on Bangladesh crisis

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Foreign Minister S Jaishankar Thursday to discuss attacks on religious minorities, including Hindus, in neighbouring Bangladesh. This includes the arrest this week of Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari and the vandalism of a temple in Chattogram district.


Following his meeting with the PM, Mr Jaishankar is expected to address both Houses Parliament tomorrow, assuming proceedings are not disrupted by the opposition.


His remarks will come as unrest continues in Bangladesh following the student-led rebellion in August of this year, which forced then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to quit and flee to India.


The Bangladeshi Army took control, briefly, of the country's government before an interim administration, headed by Nobel laureate Mohd Yunus, took charge in August. However, it has been accused of failing to reign in the attacks on Hindus and other minority communities.


Since then, there have been "multiple attacks on Hindus, and other minorities, by extremist elements", the External Affairs Ministry said Tuesday after Chinmoy Brahmachari was arrested.

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"There are several documented cases of arson and looting of minorities' homes and business establishments, as well as theft and vandalism and desecration of deities and temples," the ministry said.

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The Yunus government has reaffirmed "in the strongest terms" that every Bangladeshi, regardless of their religious identity, has the "right to establish, maintain or perform respective religious rituals and practices or express views without hindrance."


Chinmoy Brahmachari was arrested after protests by the Hindu community in Rangpur, about 300km north of national capital Dhaka. Protesters were demanding stronger legal protection and a ministry dedicated to minority affairs. The arrest follows a sedition case filed this month - allegedly for his stance on violence against Hindus, who are around eight per cent of Bangladesh's 170 million people.


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