The state unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today strongly condemned horrific arson attack on the ISKCON Namhatta Centre in Dhaka and urged the interim government of Bangladesh to take immediate steps to find out the culprits and ensure safety of the religious minorities.

The state president of the BJP and Union minister of state for development of north eastern region Sukanta Majumder demanded immediate action against the culprits. “Strongly condemn the horrific arson attack on the #ISKCON Namhatta Centre in Dhaka, Bangladesh, which destroyed the Deities of Sri Sri Laxmi Narayan and sacred temple items. This is an unforgivable act of hatred against a place of worship. Immediate action must be taken to bring the culprits to justice and ensure the safety of religious minorities. #ISKCON #SaveBangladeshiHindus ” he wrote on X-handle.

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As hatred continues to plague Bangladesh. This time, miscreants set fire to an ISKCON centre in Dhaka. Temples have also been attacked, and the idol of Lakshmi Narayan has been burnt. This is the claim made by Radha Raman Das, vice-president of ISKCON Kolkata. Paschim Banga Pradesh Adkhya (Bengal chief) of All India Santa Samaj Mahamandaleswar Paratamanandaji Maharaj said that in Bangladesh, violence against minority Hindus is escalating by the day. “Even religious sites are not spared from the violence. In just one day, the saints and Sanatani Hindus tightened their grip on them, blocking the Petrapole border for a day and making their stance clear. Muhammad Yunus, chief adviser to the Bangladesh government should remember that exporters and importers are predominantly Hindus. We are the monks appealing to the mukti yodhdha (freedom fighters) of Bangladesh: stay a bit more united. After 20, January, 2025, the global community will step forward for Bangladesh,” said Swami Paratamanandaji Maharaj.

As this the “new” reports of beatings and even murders are surfacing Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha, a city-based organisation took out a mammoth rally from Tollygunge this afternoon. There was a big procession at Ranaghat and Krishnanagar by Hindu Oikya, another organisation demanding release of the arrested monk Chinmoy Prabhu. They also burnt the Bangladeshi items on NH-34 as a mark of protests today. In the past month and a half, Bangladesh has been in turmoil over incidents like demands to ban ISKCON, the arrest of monk Chinmoy Prabhu, and allegations of Hindu persecution. In protest against the oppression of minorities, ordinary citizens and various Hindu organisations have taken to the streets in places like Kolkata, Delhi, and Tripura. Amidst all this, another incident of religious violence has come to light.

On Saturday morning, Radha Raman Das, vice-president of ISKCON Kolkata, shared on the X platform by saying that another ISKCON Namhatta centre in Bangladesh had been burned down. “All items inside the Shri Shri Lakshmi Narayan Temple in Dhaka had been completely destroyed by fire. Early this morning, by 3 am, miscreants set fire to the Shri Shri Radha Krishna Temple and Shri Shri Mahabhagya Lakshmi Narayan Temple. These are located in Dhour village under the Hare Krishna Namhatta Sangha. Petrol or octane was used to set the fire after breaking through the tin roof at the back of the temple,” he wrote on X-handle.