'Some violence has taken place, but...': Bangladesh foreign affairs adviser defends govt's response to violence against Hindus

Bangladesh Foreign Affairs Adviser Md. Touhid Hossain on Tuesday acknowledged that some violence has taken place against minorities in his country but to say that these incidents have solely been targeting Hindus is misleading.

“…It is correct that some violence has taken place, but any violence that has taken place is being shown as violence against Hindus, this is not correct…,” ANI news agency quoted Hossain as saying in New York when asked about what the Mohammad Yunus-led interim government was doing about the attacks on minorities and Hindus in his country.

He urged the Indian media to reconsider its coverage, suggesting it exaggerates the situation.

Hossain reassured that the Bangladesh government is committed to the safety of all its citizens, including the Hindu community, which he described as integral to the nation’s fabric.

“I think the Indian media needs to come out of this hyping of this issue. We are doing everything possible for the protection of our citizens and the Hindus in Bangladesh are our citizens, we are taking care of them…,” he added.

Earlier, Hossain met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and said that they discussed “all the aspects of bilateral relations” between the two countries.

After the ouster of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina on August 5, multiple reports of violence against Hindus surfaced from Bangladesh.

Hindu temples and businesses were vandalised, and two Hindu leaders of Awami League were killed, as per local media reports.

Following severe backlash from India, Chief Adviser to Bangladesh’s interim government Muhammad Yunus questioned India’s concerns of the violent attacks on Hindus in the country, saying that the issue of attacks on minority Hindus has been “exaggerated.”

He also said that the attacks on minorities in Bangladesh is more political than communal.

In an interview with PTI, Yunus had said that the attacks on minorities were a part of a political fallout, since there was a perception that most Hindus support the now-deposed Awami League government, led by Sheikh Hasina.

“I have said this to (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi also that this is exaggerated. This issue has several dimensions. When the country went through an upheaval following the atrocities by (Sheikh) Hasina and the Awami League, those who were with them also faced attacks,” the Nobel laureate had said.

With inputs from agencies