Bangladesh Confirms 88 Attacks on Minorities After India Raises Safety Concerns

Bangladesh Confirms 88 Attacks: The interim government of Bangladesh on Tuesday, acknowledged that there have been 88 incidents of communal violence against the minorities, primarily Hindus, after the ouster of then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Interim government head Muhammad Yunus’ press secretary Shafiqul Alam also said that 70 people have been arrested in those incidents. The acknowledgement came a day after Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri raised concerns about recent attacks on minorities, describing them as regrettable incidents.

Vikram Misri also highlighted India's apprehensions regarding the safety and well-being of minority communities during discussions with the Bangladeshi leadership.

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88 cases have been lodged from August 5 to October 22, Alam told reporters, adding, “The number of cases and arrests is likely to increase as new incidents of violence have also been reported in (northeastern Sunamganj, (central) Gazipur, and other areas.”

He added that there might be cases where some victims were members of the previous ruling party.

The government has so far insisted that other than a few incidents, Hindus were not attacked because of their faiths.

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“Some attacks targeted individuals who were former members of the ruling party or they were the result of personal disputes. Nevertheless, since violence occurred, the police are taking appropriate action," he said.

He said that details regarding the incidents that took place after October 22 will be shared soon.

There have been a spate of incidents of violence against Hindus and other minorities, as well as attacks on temples in Bangladesh in the last few weeks that triggered strong concerns in New Delhi.

Misri arrived in Dhaka on Monday for the annual foreign office consultations with his counterpart Mohammad Jashim Uddin amid unprecedented strain in bilateral ties over the targeting of Bangladesh’s Hindu minority and the arrest of monk Chinmoy Krishna Das.

Misri, the first senior Indian functionary to travel to Dhaka since the change of government in August, also met de facto foreign minister Touhid Hossain and caretaker administration chief Muhammad Yunus.

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