Hindu community rejects US Congressmen’s claim on Hindus persecution in Bangladesh

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: Bangladeshi Hindu community leaders have protested the six US congressmen’s letter to the US President claiming that Hindus in Bangladesh are being persecuted and said the claim is totally baseless and fabricated.

“This is not just an unjustified, baseless claim but this also portrays an immense wrong perception and hereby, we out rightly reject the false and fabricated statement of those biased congressmen’s letter to the President of the United States of America,” they wrote in letters to US President Joe Biden, protesting the six US congressional representatives letter dated on May 25.

Globally acclaimed Hindu community representative organization International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) and Sree Sree Avoymitra Mahashmsan Parichalana Committee, Chattogram, wrote separate letters to the US President in this regard on June 20, said a press release here today.

The Hindu community leaders stated in the letters that the claim of persecution of Hindus in Bangladesh is all baseless lies and fabricated.

“We are writing to let you know that the claim brought by those biased six US congressmen is an outright lie. This is to inform you that the assertions made in the letter are baseless and fabricated. The US congressmen’s claim should be treated as a travesty of truth and this was done for nothing better rather to create a threat to the existing communal harmony in Bangladesh,” they wrote in the letters to Joe Biden.

The fact remains that, with the return of the Bangladesh Awami League to power under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina since 2008, the minority community has been living in harmony, the letters read, adding, even in a few isolated incidents of communal disharmony, it was the government that promptly and firmly responded by taking strict measures to address such issues and took appropriate preventive measures.

“We are strongly protesting those biased US congressmen’s assessment of the minority community group, and there is no authenticity of the claim that the Hindu population has been halved since Sheikh Hasina’s rise to power,” the leaders wrote to Biden.

The Hindu leaders in their letters also provided statistics on significant benefits received by the Hindu community from the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government and mentioned the slogan of the Awami League `Dhormo Jaar Jaar, Utsob Shobar,’ (religion as one’s own, but festivals are common) in the letter that demonstrates its secular values and the government always provided adequate security at all festivals of religious minorities.

The letters read, “According to Pew Research Center, the Awami League government’s policies have positively impacted on the Hindu community in Bangladesh and even the US State Department’s International Religious Freedom Report acknowledges that Bangladesh has taken steps to protect religious minorities, including Hindus and that the government enacted legislation to prevent religious discrimination and violence, and they have actively condemned any form of religious persecution.”

The leaders also wrote that the Awami League government prioritized the development of infrastructure, education, and healthcare in Hindu populous areas and also addressed historical grievances and ensured that the voices of the Hindu community are heard.

In the national parliament, seats are reserved for religious minority communities, including Hindus, ensuring their participation in the decision-making process, the letters read.

The Hindu leaders also wrote that, “Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is the one who is maintaining the principle of secularism by fighting against, the extremist and fanatic groups and thus we must say we are safe as long as Sheikh Hasina is in power, since she is the only hope for upholding Bangladesh’s founding principal of secularism.”