India on Friday announced that Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri will visit Bangladesh on December 9 amid the ongoing crisis in the neighbouring country and the increasing strain in ties between New Delhi and Dhaka over attacks on minorities, including Hindus.
India on Friday announced that Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri will visit Bangladesh on December 9 amid the ongoing crisis in the neighbouring country and the increasing strain in ties between New Delhi and Dhaka over attacks on minorities, including Hindus.
Several rallies have been held in India to protest against the atrocities faced by Hindus in Bangladesh including two held by opposition parties in Kolkata on Friday. Some rallies are also scheduled for December 10 on the occasion of International Human Rights Day, in Nagpur and New Delhi.
The relations between India and Bangladesh became strained since the interim government headed by Muhammad Yunus came to power and the recent attacks on Hindus and the arrest of Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das has led to a volatile situation.
India had also hoped that the case relating to Das, arrested on the charge of sedition, will be dealt with in a just and fair manner. Das was arrested at Dhaka's Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport last month in connection with a sedition case.
India last week said the interim government in Bangladesh must live up to its responsibility of protecting all minorities as it expressed serious concern over the "surge" of extremist sentiment and increasing incidents of violence against Hindus.
India on Friday announced that Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri will travel to Bangladesh on Monday, a visit that comes amid increasing strain in ties between New Delhi and Dhaka over attacks on minorities, including Hindus, in the neighbouring country.
It will be the first high-level visit from New Delhi to Dhaka after deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled Bangladesh and took shelter in India following massive anti-government protests.
Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said Misri will travel to Bangladesh to attend a meeting under the framework of Foreign Office Consultations.
In Dhaka, the foreign secretary will hold talks with his Bangladeshi counterpart, besides holding several other meetings, he said.
"The foreign secretary is scheduled to visit Bangladesh for Foreign Office Consultations on December 9. This is part of our structured interactions with the Bangladesh side," Jaiswal said.
"We have spoken on this issue earlier. We would like to reiterate our expectation that relevant legal processes underway in Bangladesh are executed in a fair, just and transparent manner, ensuring full respect for the legal rights of concerned individuals," he said.
Nagpur
Vishva Hindu Parishad in Napur is holding a march and scheduling six motorcycle rallies on December 10to protest against atrocities on Hindus and other minorities in Bangladesh since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government there in August this year.
New Delhi
Civil society members representing more than 200 social and cultural organisations will take out a protest march to the Bangladesh embassy in the national capital next week against the "persecution" of Hindus in the neighbouring country.
The co-in charge of the RSS Delhi unit's media and communications department, Rajnish Jindal said the march to the Bangladesh embassy will be held under the banner of 'Civil Society of Delhi' on December 10.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Friday flagged the issue of attack on minorities, including Hindus, in Bangladesh and said the "anarchy" would continue as long as "Jinnah's spirit remains there".
"In Bangladesh, Hindus, Buddhists and people from other minority communities are being killed by fundamentalists. They are being burnt. Their properties are being looted. The dignity of women is being undermined.
"As long as Jinnah's spirit remains there, this kind of anarchy will continue. The poor and the deprived are being exploited there. This is the sin of India's partition in 1947," the UP chief minister said.
The BJP on Friday held a rally in north Kolkata, protesting atrocities on minorities in Bangladesh.
The rally, led by Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, was held from Shyambazar to Sinthi More.
Alleging attacks on the "lives and livelihood of religious minorities in Bangladesh and India", the Left Front also held a protest rally in the city.
The rally demanded that the governments in the two countries take steps to stop any act to "subvert the rights of minorities".
The rally, which was held from Esplanade to Park Circus, was led by Left Front leaders, including CPI(M) state secretary Mohammad Salim.