Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Several leaders of minority organisations in Bangladesh formed a human chain on December 22, accusing the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government of failing to stop violence, killings and persecution of minority communities across the country.
Addressing the gathering organised by the Minority Unity Front outside the Jatiya Press Club in Dhaka, minority leaders said that inadequate investigations and the absence of justice had created an atmosphere of fear and mistrust in Bangladesh.
Leading Bangladeshi newspaper, The Daily Star, reported that Manindra Kumar Nath, joint coordinator of the Minority Unity Front, said that Bangladeshi authorities had failed to reach out to the family of the Hindu youth Dipu Chandra Das, who was “beaten and burned to death” in Bhaluka upazila in Mymensingh district on December 18 over allegations of “religious blasphemy”.
Calling on people across communities to demand the removal of Yunus, he alleged that minorities have been subjected to continued persecution since the interim government assumed power last year.
Nath also voiced concerns over the upcoming February 2026 election in Bangladesh, saying minorities feared that they would not be able to participate freely.
“This election will be a sham election, with no real public representation,” he added.
Subrata Chowdhury, a member of the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, said that minorities, including Hindus, Buddhists, Christians, indigenous people and other small ethnic groups, were facing extreme insecurity in the South Asian nation.
Nim Chanda Bhowmik, one of the presidents of the Council, claimed that patronage of the divisive forces and militant groups was “contributing to ongoing violence” in Bangladesh.
Another member of the Council, presiding over the programme, called for a proper investigation into the killing of Das in Mymensingh and demanded punishment of those responsible, urging the interim government to curb the oppression and persecution of religious and ethnic minorities.
Bangladesh has witnessed escalating violence against minorities, including Hindus under the Yunus-led interim government, sparking outrage among people and several human rights organisations across the globe.