'Highly Exaggerated': Dhaka on MEA's Data on Attacks on Hindus, Other Minorities in Bangladesh

New Delhi: Bangladesh has called figures given by India’s Ministry of External Affairs in the parliament on purported attacks on Hindus in the neighbouring country “misleading and highly exaggerated.”

In response to Bharatiya Janata Party member of parliament Dharmapuri Arvind’s question, the MEA had said that there had been 2200 cases of violence against Hindus and other minorities in Bangladesh this year, till December 8.

The breakdown it gave was the following:

The Bangladesh attack figures claimed by the Indian government were reported upon by several news outlets, especially the significant number from this year – in which attacks on religious minorities in Bangladesh purportedly saw a jump of over 1800 instances.

In 2023, the MEA said, there were 302 instances and in 2022, there were 47.

The MEA also said that the Indian government has taken “serious note” of these incidents and shared its concerns with the Bangladesh government. “India’s expectation is that the Government of Bangladesh will take all necessary measures to ensure safety and welfare of Hindus and other minorities. The same has also been reiterated during the visit of the Foreign Secretary to Bangladesh on December 9, 2024. The High Commission of India in Dhaka continues to monitor the situation related to the minorities in Bangladesh closely,” it said.

The MEA further sought to impress in its parliament answer that the primary responsibility for the protection of life and liberty of all citizens, including minorities, “rests with the government of the country concerned.”

The press wing of the government under Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus has responded to these figures, claiming they have been exaggerated and are misleading. It has furnished numbers citing the independent human rights organisation Ain O Salish Kendra to say “the number of violent incidents against religious minorities in Bangladesh between January and November 2024 is 138, in which 368 houses were attacked and 82 people were injured.”

The Business Standard, a Bangladeshi paper, has reported that the figure placed by the MEA in the Rajya Sabha is close to the claim of Bangladesh-Hindu-Buddhist-Christian Oikya Parishad. The Parishad had said that at least 2,010 incidents of violence against minorities took place across the country from August 4 to August 20.

The press wing also said many of these incidents happened “between August 5 and August 8 when there was no government” – after ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled following protests and her government’s violent reaction to it.

Bangladesh also said that most of these attacks were political in nature, adding that the government is keen to not gloss over the offences.

“The Interim Government of Bangladesh is investigating every reported incident and is committed to taking the perpetrators to book. At least 97 cases have been filed between August 4 and December 10, and 75 people were arrested for alleged attacks on religious minorities since August, according to police headquarters.”

“We request all to refrain from providing misleading information regarding such hate crimes,” it said.

A day ago, on December 21, the Bangladesh newspaper Daily Star reported that eight idols in three temples in Mymensingh and Dinajpur had been vandalised.