Bangladesh violence: Hindu groups in UK urge PM Johnson to condemn attack against minority

Hindu groups in the United Kingdom have written to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Home Secretary Priti Patel, and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, pleading with them to seek justice for the victims of Bangladesh's recent wave of violence against the minority Hindu population. Other groups such as Bengali Hindu Adarsha Sangha (BHAS) UK, Hindu Council UK, and Insight UK joined ISKCON for a peaceful protest outside the Bangladesh High Commission in London, Birmingham, and Edinburgh on Saturday, October 23.

They claimed the rally was held to raise awareness about the violent attacks against Hindus in Bangladesh earlier this month during Durga Puja and Navratri. They delivered a letter to Bangladesh's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Saida Muna Tasneem, in London. Similar letters are now being sent to Johnson and other UK Cabinet ministers, including Patel and Truss, pleading with them to intervene in Bangladesh and take proper steps to protect the Hindu minority and ensure their human rights.

PTI reported, ISKCON's UK Chairman, Praghosa Das said, “the UK Hindu community are saddened and appalled by recent events in Bangladesh, where radical extremists targeted and attacked a number of Hindu temples during the holy festival of Navratri, where countless congregation members were injured, two killed and numerous deities destroyed.”

He added that these heinous acts of depravity have received little to no notice in the media and they ask the UK government to condemn these acts of violence and seek assurances from the Bangladeshi High Commission that action would be done against those guilty, according to PTI. According to the organisations, 315 Hindu temples in Bangladesh have been vandalised, and almost 1,500 Hindu houses and businesses have been plundered as of October 20.

Hindu Organisations ask long-term assurance from Bangladeshi Government

According to PTI reports, BHAS UK said that, in UK, Hindus of all generations have shown their heartfelt sympathy and sorrow for the deceased and persecuted during Bangladesh violence. The protest march resonates with and confirms that position, and serves as a strong message to Bangladeshi authorities. Their request to the Bangladesh government is that they assure long-term Hindu protection and preserve human rights, punish those guilty for the violence, rebuild temples that have been damaged, and restore Hindu shops and homes that have been looted and burned.

With the image of the letter that has been sent to UK PM Johnson, BHAS UK wrote on Twitter, "We thank over 150 organisations of the British Hindu Diaspora to support the letter to the UK PM to stop killing of innocent Hindus in Bangladesh."

Since October 13, when an alleged blasphemous tweet circulated on social media during the Durga Puja celebrations, attacks on Hindu temples have increased in Bangladesh. On the night of October 17, a crowd in Bangladesh vandalised 66 Hindu homes and set fire to at least 20 others.

(With inputs from PTI)

Image: ScotHindus/Twitter