Dhaka: Bangladesh's newly-formed interim government chief adviser Muhammad Yunus on Tuesday visited the Dhakeshwari National Temple in the capital, where he emphasised that rights are equal for all religious communities and there should be no differentiation, according to local media reports. Yunus' remarks came in the backdrop of escalating attacks on Hindu temples, households and businesses in the wake of the unrest that led to Sheikh Hasina's ouster.
"Rights are equal for everyone. We are all one people with one right. Do not make any distinctions among us. Please, assist us. Exercise patience, and later judge -- what we were able to do and not. If we fail, then criticise us," he was quoted as saying by the Daily Star. "In our democratic aspirations, we should not be seen as Muslims, Hindus, or Buddhists, but as human beings. Our rights should be ensured. The root of all problems lies in the decay of institutional arrangements."
The 84-year-old Nobel laureate also exchanged greetings with the leaders of Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad and Mahanagar Sarbajanin Puja Committee, as well as officials from the temple management board and devotees. He was accompanied by law adviser Asif Nazrul and religious affairs adviser Khalid Hossain. Puja Udjapan Parishad President Basudeb Dhar congratulated Yunus on taking office and said he had a cordial meeting with the chief adviser.
Attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh
The rampant attacks on the Hindu minorities in Bangladesh following massive protests over government job quotas has evoked global concern. A number of Hindu temples, households and businesses were vandalised, women assaulted and at least two Hindu leaders affiliated with the Awami League party headed by Hasina were killed in the violence in Bangladesh after she fled the country, according to community leaders in Dhaka.
As per the data provided by two Hindu organisations in a letter to interim government chief Muhammad Yunus, at least 205 attacks have taken place on members of minority communities in 52 districts since August 5, when Hasina resigned and fled the country. Over 300 Indian Americans and Bangladeshi-origin Hindus staged a protest at Sugar Land City Hall in Houston on Sunday over violence against Hindus in Bangladesh
Yunus had earlier called the attacks on the minority communities 'heinous' and urged the protesting students to protect all Hindu, Christian, and Buddhist families from harm. He reached out to the agitating and urged them not to let their efforts be sabotaged by those seeking to undermine their progress
'Monster is gone', says Yunus on Hasina's ouster
Meanwhile, the interim govt chief referred to Hasina, who left the country after resigning and is currently living safely in India, as a “monster”. “Finally, the moment has come—the monster is gone,” he said without naming Hasina’s departure from the country, which marked the end of what the Opposition in the country dubbed as an autocratic rule which silenced all dissent.
Yunus ran into trouble with Hasina in 2008, when her administration launched a series of investigations into him and his Grameen Bank. He was put on trial in 2013 on charges of receiving money without government permission, including his Nobel Prize and royalties from a book. Yunus has denied the allegations, and his supporters say he was targeted because of his frosty relations with Hasina.
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