India calls for fair trial of jailed Hindu monk Chinmoy Das in Bangladesh
India calls for fair trial of jailed Hindu monk Chinmoy Das in Bangladesh India calls for fair trial of jailed Hindu monk Chinmoy Das in Bangladesh
India on Friday urged Bangladeshi authorities to ensure a fair trial for jailed Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari. He was arrested by Dhaka Police on November 25 in connection with a sedition case. His bail plea was rejected on Thursday (January 2).
“We urge a fair trial”, said Randhir Jaiswal, the official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs, at a weekly media briefing on January 3.
advertisement
India’s response comes over a month after the monk, leading protests against atrocities against Hindus in violence-hit Bangladesh, was arrested by the Dhaka Police’s Detective Branch on November 25, 2024, on charges of disrespecting the Bangladeshi flag at a rally which he had addressed in October, according to the Bangladeshi media.
Following Das’ arrest, his bail application was rejected by Bangladesh’s Chittagong’s Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court on November 26.
Two other monks who went to meet Das in jail were also put behind bars on November 29.
Das, earlier in November 2024, in an exclusive interview with India Today Digital, said that the sedition case was an attempt to finish off the leadership spearheading the protests for minority rights in Muhammad Yunus’ regime.
Chinmoy emerged as a prominent voice for minorities, particularly Hindus, following the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s regime, which led to widespread attacks on minorities in Bangladesh.
Several incidents of violence against minorities in Bangladesh have been reported in the past couple of months after the ouster of former Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina.
Bangladesh has been embroiled in unrest since June 2024 due to massive protests, which initially started as agitation over quotas in government jobs but soon turned anti-government.