Why PM Modi’s concern about Bangladeshi Hindus has no takers?
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is required to show action needed to bring his own house in order before reminding his neighbours about their duties
The attacks on Hindus and other minorities in Bangladesh after Sheikh Hasina’s resignation are matter of deep concern though there are doubts about the exact nature and scale of the violence.
Different media groups, including British broadcaster BBC, have scrutinised India’s mainstream media, and based on fact check analysis, accused them of using fake and unrelated videos to exaggerate the actual situation in Bangladesh.
Also, at the time when the Indian media was in full blown misinformation run while reporting about the attacks on Bangladeshi Hindus, a grand alliance of local Hindu organisations refuted widespread violence against the minorities in Bangladesh.
In a video message released online, Advocate Gobinda Pramanik, Secretary General of Bangladesh Jatio Hindu Mohajote, confirmed attacks on Hindus but said these attacks were not communal in nature. He also said Hindus having allegiance or close ties with the erstwhile Sheikh Hasina government were attacked just like Muslim supporters of the now dethroned Awami League.
In the meantime, different Muslim groups and student organisations at the forefront of the anti-government protests in Bangladesh formed small groups to provide protection to Temples and businesses owned by Hindus. This was also acknowledged and hailed in the Indian Parliament by Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar.
Nonetheless, these attacks, even if on a smaller scale, must not only be unequivocally condemned but the interim government headed by Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus must also be pressurised using all means to take immediate actions needed to ensure protection to Hindus and other minorities in Bangladesh.
Taking note of the grave situation in Bangladesh, various heads of states and rights groups expressed their concerns over the attacks on the minorities in the country. So did Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi - soon after the violence erupted and also today while addressing the nation on 78th Independence Day.
"140 crore Indians worried about the safety of the Hindus, the minorities in Bangladesh. India will always be a well-wisher of Bangladesh's progress. We hope the situation normalises in Bangladesh soon. Indians want the security of Hindus, and minorities there to be ensured”, Modi said during his Independence Day address from the Red Fort Thursday August 15, 2024.
The concerns raised by PM Modi are necessary and timely. The only problem why his concerns have no takers and lack substance is his own record, and the record of the BJP and the party leaders vis-à-vis security and safety of minorities in India.
The communal agenda of the BJP and its leaders, without any exception, has been widely documented with strong evidences. On his part, Narendra Modi as Prime Minister was expected to rein in the haters. Instead he, many a time, encouraged them. Worst and in a clear disgrace to his position as Prime Minister of this great nation, he was personally involved in inciting violence against the minorities in India, especially the Muslims, in one way or the other.
Various heads of states and international rights bodies on a number of times issued appeals to the present dispensation similar to the one by PM Modi during his Independence Day Address Thursday. The latest is by New York based Human Rights Watch.
In a report published on the eve of 78th Independence Day or the 77th anniversary of India’s Independence, Human Rights Watch accused Prime Minister Modi and the ruling BJP of using hate speech, inciting discrimination, hostility, and violence against the minorities, especially the Muslims and Christians, to win the 2024 General Elections.
“Indian Prime Minister Modi and BJP leaders made blatantly false claims in their campaign speeches against Muslims and other minority groups,” said Elaine Pearson, Asia Director at Human Rights Watch.
“These inflammatory speeches, amid a decade of attacks and discrimination against minorities under the Modi administration, have further normalized abuses against Muslims, Christians, and others”, she added.
Analyzing a total of 173 campaign speeches by Modi delivered during the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections, Human Rights Watch said the Indian Prime Minister made Islamophobic remarks in 110 speeches.
"The Modi government’s actions have violated India’s obligations under international human rights law that prohibit discrimination based on race, ethnicity, or religion and require the government to ensure equal protection of the law to everyone. The government is also obligated to protect religious and other minority populations and to fully and fairly prosecute those responsible for discrimination and violence against them", Human Rights Watch said.
Prime Minister Modi however neither expressed any regret nor has taken note of these warnings. On the contrary, he denied these allegations, claiming about his party and its affiliated groups.
“We are not against Muslims. That is not our domain”, Modi said further pointing to India’s democratic, secular, and diversity standards, and the country being ‘mother of democracy’.
Human Rights however is not convinced and warns:
“The Indian government’s claims of plurality and being the ‘mother of democracy’ ring hollow in the face of its abusive anti-minority actions. The new Modi government needs to reverse its discriminatory policies, act on violence against minorities, and ensure justice for those affected”, Elaine Pearson, Asia Director at Human Rights Watch, said in the report published a day before the Independence Day 2024 when Modi was probably giving final touches to his I-Day Speech.
When such are the international views and opinions about Narendra Modi and his government, the Indian Prime Minister is required to show action needed to bring his own house in order before reminding his neighbours about their duties.
Footnote: There is also another opinion by a section in the India who believes Modi and BJP are neither concerned about the minorities in Bangladesh nor in India. Their sole aim is to further a political agenda which ensures the continuation of the POWER they hold.
[The writer, Aleem Faizee, is Founder Editor of ummid.com. He can be reached at aleem.faizee@gmail.com or @aleemfaizee.]
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