Parbhani: Activists of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal staged a protest near the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue on Saturday, condemning what they claimed were targeted attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh over the past three years. Holding placards and raising slogans, the protesters denounced alleged incidents of violence, arson and intimidation against the Hindu minority. They demanded that the Indian government take diplomatic steps to intervene and ensure the safety of Hindus across the border.
A delegation of protestors later submitted a memorandum addressed to President Droupadi Murmu through District Collector Sanjaysingh Chavan. In the memorandum, they alleged that atrocities against Bangladesh’s Hindu population had escalated after former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina stepped down from office. According to them, homes, temples and businesses belonging to Hindus were being systematically targeted.
The memorandum further claimed that between August 5 and August 20, 2024, violent incidents were reported across 49 Bangladeshi districts, allegedly resulting in the deaths of 1,068 people. The activists stated that shops were looted, households were set ablaze and families were forced to flee to safer regions. They urged the Centre to publicly condemn the incidents and to pressure Dhaka through diplomatic channels, insisting that silence would embolden extremist groups.
VHP district president Surendra Shahane, district minister Rajkumar Bhambre, along with Manoj Kabra, Sunil Rampurkar, Abhijeet Kulkarni, Kamal Kishor Agrawal, Ritesh Jain, Bablu Tak, Rajeshwar Parvekar, Om Mudiraj, Anil Deshmukh, Prakash Kulkarni and several other office bearers and supporters were present at the agitation.