New Delhi, Feb 20: Chief of Bangladesh’s border guarding force on Thursday sought to downplay the attacks on minorities in his country that took place after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government, saying such reports were “exaggerated”.
Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) director general Maj Gen Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Siddiqui also said “many new issues” under the common heads were discussed during his high-level talks with an Indian delegation headed by BSF DG Daljit Singh Chawdhary here.
Siddiqui, while speaking to reporters during a joint press conference with Chawdhary, asserted that authorities of his country took steps for the protection of the minorities as he gave example of his force “personally” extending security cover to Durga Puja pandals within 8 km of their jurisdiction along the international border.
This was the first high-level meeting of the two forces after the regime change in Bangladesh in August last year.
The BGB DG also said they raised “objections” and “flagged a number of cases” during the bi-annual DG-level talks with regard to the fencing being done by India along the IB and has requested for a “joint inspection” before the work is done.
“The attacks on minorities in the recent past, I would say, that this is an exaggeration and to be honest such attacks on minorities per se did not happen.” He played down these instances saying the “overall the law and order situation was not against the minorities, it was, may be, some bit of political problem but definitely that was not on the minorities.” “The substantiation for this is the recently held Durga Puja which was one of the most peacefully organised and arranged Hindu festivals. The law enforcement agencies of Bangladesh were very precisely and strictly tasked by the government so that the Hindu community is able to perform…(the rituals),” the BGB chief said.
He said they got “several requests (from the minority community), sometimes without any fear or any threat, and even when there was nothing substantial (vis-a-vis threats against minorities), we provided security.” Siddiqui said such reports were more in the media, “tempting” the politicians to comment. There were such instances during the initial couple of months after August 5 (fall of Hasina government in 2024)…, he said.
A recent report of the UN Human Rights Office had said that “widespread attacks were reported against Hindu homes, businesses, and places of worship, especially in rural and historically tense areas such as Thakurgaon, Lalmonirhat, and Dinajpur, as well as other places such as Sylhet, Khulna, and Rangpur” following the fall of the Hasina government last year.
The report said this destruction was especially prevalent in areas perceived to be sympathetic to the Awami League as Hindus have often been stereotypically associated with this political faction.
The Union home ministry, soon after the regime change in Bangladesh, had constituted a committee under the ADG BSF (eastern command) to “ensure safety of Indian citizens and people belonging to minority communities in Bangladesh.”
Asked if there were any changes in the agenda points during these talks in the wake of the regime change in Bangladesh, the BGB DG said while “the broad heads might be the same but the inner text, contextual differences…(had changes) and there were many new issues under the common broadheads…” The BSF chief, however, said the agenda points “more or less were the same with few changes here and there” as the Indo-Bangla border was a very “dynamic and active” border.
The BSF DG said the Indian side “urged” BGB during the meeting to ensure that the border remains absolutely secure and no infiltration happens on the border so that such incidents of Bangladeshi criminals attacking BSF personnel and local Indians do not happen. (PTI)
