Masive Protests Erupt In Dhaka By Minority Leaders Over Arrest of Hindu Man Building 81-Foot Lord Ram Statue

Protests erupted in Dhaka, Bangladesh, following the arrest of Haridas Chandra Tarani Das, a young Hindu man accused of money laundering, which many believe is a targeted attack due to his initiative to build a statue of Lord Ram.

Dhaka:Massive protests rocked Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka, by minority leaders in the Asian country after a young Hindu man, Haridas Chandra Tarani Das, was arrested by the Bangladeshi authorities on the charges of “money laundering”. The protest was organised by the Bangladesh Hindu-Buddhist-Christian Unity Council outside the National Press Club in Dhaka.

The minority leaders condemned the police action. It was alleged that Das was targeted after his initiative to construct an 81-foot-high statue of Lord Ram in the Palashbari area of northern Bangladesh’s Gaibandha district, reported ANI.

“Today, Bangladesh Hindu Buddha Krishnalok Tabarishad organised a demonstration against the arrest of Haridas Chandra Tarani Das. Haridas Chandra Tarani Das was arrested by the government some two or three days ago over the claim that he built a Ram Chandra Devata, Ram Chandra statue in Palashbari. In that case, we cannot accept this sort of arrest of Taroni Das,” Manindra Kumar Nath, general secretary of the Bangladesh Hindu-Buddhist-Christian Unity Council, told the news agency.

Nath claimed that the systemic nature of the violence and legal targeting were directed against non-Muslim communities across the country over the last two years. “You know, from the very beginning of the last two years, different types of arrests and atrocities have happened in Bangladesh. Not only that, you know, 3,000 incidents happened all over Bangladesh in the last year. Out of these, 66 were murdered, and there were so many temples attacked by the fundamentalists. It is undesirable. We cannot accept it,” Nath added.

Notably, after the arrest, the local court sent Ds to prison. It led to outrage among minority communities who alleged that money laundering charges were “malicious” attempt to stop religious construction. The incident comes weeks after large-scale protests by the Hindu community over the alleged desecration of an image of Lord Ram during an Islamist rally in Gaibandha district. Subrata Chowdhury, a senior leader of the Bangladesh Hindu-Buddhist-Christian Unity Council, also issued a stern warning.

“A beautiful environment has been created; an environment of harmony has been established. In such a situation, who are they who have caused this kind of incident to embarrass this government? We want to give an ultimatum to the government to take proper action against this,” Chowdhury stated as quoted by ANI.

In the past two years after the ousting of Sheikh Hasina, increasing incidents of atrocities on minorities have increased in Bangladesh. In June this year, the members of the Hindu community in Bangladesh held a torchlight procession in Dhaka. against the alleged disrespect of Lord Ram. It had been alleged that a violent mob desecrated the statue of Lord Ram.

The rising incidents against minorities had also drawn diplomatic attention, with India on June 23 calling on Bangladesh to take firm measures against radical Islamist groups and ensure the safety and security of minority communities.