'Sedition Case Against ISKCON Man Out of Line but Bangladesh Situation Not as Bad as India Thinks': Zafar Sobhan

In an interview to discuss the arrest of the ISKCON leader Chinmoy Krishna Das and India’s wider concern about attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh, editor of the Dhaka Tribune, Zafar Sobhan, said that “in relation to the alleged offence” the charge of sedition brought against Das is “out of line, unwarranted and unwise”.

However, in a 33-minute interview to Karan Thapar for The Wire, Sobhan also forcefully pointed out that politicians and public in India need to realise that the situation in Bangladesh for Hindus has “far improved compared to August and early September”.

Sobhan said that India, “our neighbour, our friend, our ally”, needs to understand that Bangladesh is a country in transition and after the overthrow of the Sheikh Hasina “autocracy” there will be a period of uncertainty and instability but, importantly, its being brought under control.

He said reports in the Indian papers have exaggerated the treatment of Hindus in Bangladesh. This is why chief advisor Muhammad Yunus calls such reports “propaganda”.

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