Tarique Rahman in Bangladesh highlights: Yunus govt perpetrating atrocities against non-Muslims, says Hasina

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The ousted former Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, took a sharp jibe at Muhammad Yunus over the atrocities against minorities that have been ongoing in the country for the past few days. 

The 78-year-old Awami League leader also said that the current ruling group, which has seized power illegally, is setting "horrific precedents such as burning religious minorities to death", in an apparent reference to the lynching of a Hindu man in Bangladesh last week.

In her message on the occasion of Christmas, Hasina accused the Yunus government of interfering with the freedom of people of all religions and communities to practice their own faiths.

"In particular, it is perpetrating unspeakable atrocities against non-Muslims. It has even set horrific precedents such as burning religious minorities to death. I firmly believe that the people of Bangladesh will not allow this dark time to continue any longer," she said.

The Hindu population in Bangladesh has been affected by a series of incidents against minority communities in the country after the ouster of Hasina government in August last year. Last week, a 25-year-old Hindu worker was lynched by a mob in Mymensingh city.

On Monday, minority groups in Bangladesh held a protest in Dhaka over the interim government's failure to prevent the persecution of minorities.

Hasina hoped that Christmas would further strengthen the existing bonds of harmony and goodwill between Christians and followers of other religions in Bangladesh.

"On this festive occasion of Christmas, I wish all Christian brothers and sisters happiness, peace, and prosperity," she said.

"May darkness give way to dawn. May Bangladesh live forever," she added.

(With inputs from PTI)

Deposed Bangladeshi prime minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday strongly criticised the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus, accusing it of carrying out "unspeakable atrocities" against non-Muslims. In a Christmas message, the 78-year-old Awami League leader alleged that the unelected regime has undermined religious freedom and set “horrific precedents,” including the killing of religious minorities. Referring to the recent lynching of a Hindu man, Hasina said Bangladesh’s people would not tolerate such darkness for long.

After a Hindu man was beaten to death by a group of villagers in Bangladesh’s Rajbari district late on Wednesday night, the local government called it the spread of misleading information about the man's killing. Police investigations confirmed the incident was not communal in nature but linked to criminal activity. The deceased, Amrit Mandal alias Samrat, was a wanted criminal involved in murder and extortion, who was killed during a clash with locals while demanding extortion money, they said.

Records show that Samrat was a wanted suspect in several serious cases, including murder and extortion filed in 2023, and had active arrest warrants against him.

Bollywood actor Janhvi Kapoor on Thursday shared a strong message over the lynching and death of Dipu Das in Bangladesh. 

"Dipu Chandra Das.

What is happening in Bangladesh is barbaric. It is slaughter, and it is not an isolated incident. If you don't know about his inhumane public lynching, read about it, see the videos, and ask questions. And if, despite all of this, you feel no rage, then it is exactly this kind of hypocrisy that will destroy us before we know it. We will continue to cry about things halfway across the globe while our own brothers and sisters are burnt to death. Communal discrimination and extremism in any and every form, whether we are the victims or the perpetrators, needs to be called out and condemned before we forget our humanity. We are pawns that believe we reside on either side of an invisible line. Recognise this. And equip yourself with knowledge so u can take a stand for the innocent lives that are continuously lost and terrorised in this communal crossfire," she wrote.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) took a sharp jibe at Mamata Banerjee over the death of Amrit Mondal in Bangladesh. 

"Another Hindu has been lynched in Bangladesh. No wonder Mamata Banerjee opposes CAA, which gives citizenship to Hindus who face persecution in Bangladesh, and also opposes the SIR, which would remove her Bangladeshi and Rohingya vote bank," the BJP wrote on X. 

Mondal was beaten to death in Bangladesh nearly two days ago over allegations of extortions.

A group of citizens in Nepal on Thursday protested against the ongoing atrocities against the Hindus in Bangladesh.

On the present situation prevailing in Bangladesh, Saddam Hussain, the former President of Chhatra League (the student wing of the banned Awami League), Saddam Hussain, said, "There is a situation of total lawlessness in Bangladesh... The mob is actually ruling Bangladesh... The government is facilitating this in every way possible. Extremists were openly meeting with international terrorist organisations, Pakistan-backed organisations, and those who were previously convicted of heinous attacks.... What Osman Hadi's brother said paints a sad but accurate picture of the current situation... The government is responsible for all the things that happen inside Bangladesh..."

After seeing his ailing mother, Khaleda Zia, Tarique Rahman left for his residence in Dhaka's Gulshan. 

He is accompanied by several bigshots of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). The supporters of the BNP have gathered on the streets to see him after 17 years.

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman on Thursday called on countrymen to join hands to maintain law and order, in his first address to party supporters hours after his arrival in Dhaka after a gap of 17 years. 

“Whatever political party we belong to, whatever religion we believe in, whether we are non-partisan individuals – all must join hands to maintain law and order,” he told thousands of party supporters gathered at the July 36 Expressway in the capital, where he went straight after arriving at the airport.

Rahman's call for maintaining law and order came amid a fresh wave of unrest and political instability gripping Bangladesh following the killing of prominent youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi, who was a prominent face in last year's mass protests that forced the collapse of the Sheikh Hasina government.

Rahman, the 60-year-old son of ailing former prime minister Khaleda Zia, has emerged as a leading contender for prime ministership in the polls.

Another Hindu man in Bangladesh died in an incident of mob lynching over charges of extortion. The deceased is identified as Amrit Mondal alias Samrat. 

The police have arrested a man called Mohammed Selim in the case, as reported by The Daily Star.

Bangladesh's slain radical leader Sharif Osman Hadi's brother has alleged that a section within the interim government of Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus plotted the killing to derail the upcoming general election.

Hours after his claim, Md Khuda Baksh Chowdhury, Special Assistant (Ministry of Home Affairs) to the Chief Adviser, resigned from the position.

"It is you who got Osman Hadi killed, and now you are trying to foil the election by using this as an issue. Those who are in power when Osman Hadi was killed, you won't be able to evade the responsibility," Hadi's brother Omar Hadi told a protest rally in the capital staged by Inqilab Mancha on Tuesday.

Omar said that the government must "immediately expose the entire group involved" in his brother's killing to the nation. He warned, "Otherwise, you will be forced to flee the country," referencing the fate of deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League regime.

Hadi, a staunch critic of India alongside the Awami League, was one of the leaders of last year’s violent student-led street protest dubbed the July Uprising that toppled the Hasina-led government and later floated the Inqilab Mancha.

(With inputs from PTI)

Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader Tarique Rahman has reached Dhaka's Evercare Hospital along with several other BNP leaders. 

His wife and daughter reached earlier. Rahman is set to meet mother, Khaleda Zia.

Bangladesh police announced a reward for information on attackers who set a Hindu-owned house on fire near the southeastern port city of Chattogram, as mob violence emerged as a major crisis in the changed political landscape.

Chattogram range’s police chief, Ahsan Habib, offered the bounty on Wednesday night without specifying the amount during his visit to the burned-down house of Qatar expatriate workers Shukh Shil and Anil Shil in the Raojan area on the outskirts of the city, Ittefaq newspaper reported on Thursday. 

According to reports, unidentified miscreants set the home on fire on Tuesday night, but the residents managed to come out of the house unharmed.

  Family members said they woke up after sensing the heat of the fire in the predawn hours, but were initially unable to come out as the doors were locked from the outside. The eight members of the two families escaped the burning house after cutting through tin sheets and bamboo fencing.

  A series of arson attacks targeting the homes of Hindu families took place in the past week in the same area. Police said they have arrested five suspects and formed a "special security team" to ensure safety in the neighbourhood, The Business Standard newspaper reported. 

  “Houses of seven Hindu families were burned in three separate localities (at Raojan)” in five days, the report read.

  Raozan Police Station chief Sajedul Islam said so far, five suspects have been arrested in police raids, and manhunts were underway for others. 

The police held a meeting with local influential people to ensure interfaith harmony and social vigilance against perpetrators of such “heinous crimes”.
 

Tarique Rahman nears Dhaka's Evercare Hospital. At present, his convoy is at Basundhara.

Tarique Rahman's wife, Zubaida Rahman, and daughter Zaima Rahman reached Evercare Hospital to see Khaleda Zia.

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leader Tarique Rahman is on his way to meet his mother, Khaleda Zia, at Dhaka's Evercaere Hospital. 

His convoy is greeted by thousands of people who gathered to see him after 17 years.

Rahman will reach hospital in sometime.

In his speech, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Chairperson, Tarique Rahman, highlighted the role of the youth in building a nation. 

He emphasised that the younger generation will play a significant role in building a new Bangladesh.

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader, Tarique Rahman, took a sharp jibe at the erstwhile Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, over her alleged authoritarian rule. 

In his speech, Rahman said that in the 15 years of Hasina's regime, no one could raise a voice against her administration as fear gripped entire Bangladesh.

Scores of BNP supporters attempted to approach Tarique Rahman after his speech, and his security personnel had to struggle to keep them at bay.

Lakhs of people gathered at Purabachal, Dhaka, to see Rahman, who returned to the country after 17 years.