In Bangladesh, Hindu community leaders, students, professors, as well as activists are preparing to protest and stage hunger strikes in the capital Dhaka and other districts on Saturday, October 23, to demand the protection and security of minority religious groups in the country.

According to the Dhaka Tribune, different groups such as the Bangladesh Hindu-Bouddha-Christian Oikya Parishad and the Bangladesh Puja Udjapon Parishad (BPUP), have declared their involvement in the demonstrations demanding a speedy trial on the offenders who attacked Hindu temples, Durga Puja arenas, and residences in several districts in recent days. 

The BPUP claimed that the government had failed to respond to violence against Hindus across the nation, which had been provoked by false claims that the Holy Quran had been defiled in Comilla. According to the Dhaka Tribune, 102 complaints were lodged in relation to the recent attacks against the Hindu minority community, accusing 20,619 persons. According to the police's official data, 583 persons have been detained and operations are underway to apprehend the others.  

ISKCON members protest in Kolkata

Meanwhile, after the violence at an ISKCON temple in Bangladesh's Noakhali city, ISKCON members have installed banners and posters in Kolkata, criticising the recent episodes of violence and brutality against Bangladesh's Hindu minority population. Further, ISKCON has scheduled a worldwide demonstration on October 23 at roughly 700 ISKCON temples in 150 countries. According to ISKCON Kolkata Vice President Radharamn Das, they have also arranged a protest and prayer gathering in Kolkata. 

According to an official statement, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) revealed that several temples, residences, stores, and persons were targeted across numerous districts of Bangladesh with many innocent Hindu minority members being murdered. The statement further said that the global ISKCON community is startled and dismayed by the ongoing sequence of violent acts perpetrated against the Hindu minority in Bangladesh, including ISKCON temples and followers. 

Bangladesh PM's remarks on communal violence

ISKCON has urged Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's administration to act quickly to put a halt to the attacks and violence, further requesting that those responsible for the attacks be prosecuted. Furthermore, Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina has directed Bangladesh's Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan to take "immediate" measures against those who carried out the "pre-planned" assaults. Her administration has accused a 'conspiracy' of sabotaging communal unity ahead of the country's elections. 

(Image: AP)