The Hindu Question

Rana Dasgupta is the General Secretary of the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, one of the main minority rights organisations in the country. He spoke to Snigdhendu Bhattacharya about the attacks on minorities, the role of the student leadership, the interim government and future plans

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How did the July-August developments impact the minority communities?

When the anti-quota movement started at the beginning of July, students from all religions and castes joined it. The student martyrs of the agitation included those from the minority communities. However, towards the end of the movement, when it peaked, attacks on minorities started in at least five districts of the country.

When did the attacks start?

On the evening of August 4, when the students had called for a March to Dhaka with the one-point agenda of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s resignation, we had anticipated that the movement was going to demand the PM’s resignation, which could trigger clashes. In fact, we had formed a national-level monitoring committee on August 3, headed by Nirmal Rozario of the Bangladesh Christian Association. Following PM Hasina’s resignation on August 5, the attacks intensified. In the absence of any police on the streets or at police stations, miscreants had a free run in targeting minorities. By the time Muhammad Yunus took charge as the head (chief advisor) of the interim government on August 8, we had listed such attacks in 52 districts.

What was the nature of these attacks?

The main targets during the communal attacks were the houses, businesses and places of worship, mostly of Hindus. The attacks included loot, vandalism and arson. There also were a few cases of molestation. We have sent an account of such incidents to the chief advisor via an open letter.

What was the role of the leaders of the student movement?

Leaders of the Students Against Discrimination platform have repeatedly called for communal harmony, both during the movement and after the formation of the interim government. They even formed vigilance teams to protect minorityconcentration localities and places of worship.