More violence against Hindus as angry mob beats Hindu man to death

A 28-year-old tuk-tuk driver, Samir Kumar Das, was killed in Feni District raising to 12 the number of Hindus killed in recent violence against minorities. India is calling for swift and decisive action. Meanwhile, concern is also being expressed following the reactions of a Hindu priest in Ghaziabad, who is fanning the flames by calling for the distribution of swords and the formation of “squads like ISIS.”

Dhaka (AsiaNews) – Another Hindu man was killed in Bangladesh. The 28-year-old victim, Samir Kumar Das, was beaten to death by an angry mob last Sunday evening.

Das worked as a tuk-tuk driver in the Dagonbhuiyan area of ​​Feni District. According to police, the attackers fled in a vehicle after the attack. The young man's body was found near a hospital in the subdistrict.

Das's murder comes just days after a Hindu shopkeeper in Narsingdi District was attacked in his shop; he was later pronounced dead at the hospital where he was taken.

Two more Hindu men died last week in violence against religious minorities. The number of Hindus killed in Bangladesh has reportedly reached 12.

Last Friday, Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal addressed the repeated attacks against minorities in Bangladesh, stressing the need to address these incidents “swiftly and firmly.”

“We continue to witness a disturbing pattern of recurring attacks on minorities as well as their homes and businesses by extremists in Bangladesh,” the spokesperson said. “Such communal incidents need to be dealt with swiftly and firmly.”

He added: “We have also observed a troubling tendency to attribute such incidents to personal rivalries, political differences, or extraneous reasons. Such disregard only emboldens the extremists and the perpetrators of such crimes and deepens the sense of fear and insecurity among minorities."

These acts of violence threaten to spark more violence. In Uttar Pradesh (India), for example, a controversial Hindu priest, Yati Narsinghanand Giri, head of the Dasna Devi temple, is fanning the flames of extremism.

In a video released in late December, he is seen saying: "Hindus should form suicide squads. We should form organisations like ISIS."

The priest also expressed support for the recent distribution of swords in India by Hindu Raksha Dal (HRD) leader Pinky Chaudhary and his associates, although he “calls it insufficient".

Swords were also distributed on the streets, claiming that Hindu girls were in danger from Muslims and needed to defend themselves.

These claims are considered dangerous and incendiary. For legal experts and social media users, they could constitute serious criminal offences, such as incitement to violence and promotion of terrorism.

• bangladesh
• india
• attacks
• angry mob
• minorities
• muslims
• hindus
• extremists
• suicide squads
• isis