Another Hindu women, a member of Union Parishad was gang-raped, poisoned and killed.

Questions again over minority security in Bangladesh; After gang rape, Hindu woman murdered in Narail.

Sathi Das | HENB | Kolkata | Dec 29, 2024:: Allegations of attacks on Hindu minorities, vandalism of houses and shops, and arson were constantly coming to India from the neighboring country bangladesh. This time, a Hindu woman was gang-raped and poisoned to death in Narail upazila of Bangladesh. Although several claims and media reports in Bangladesh began on December 24, the woman in her fifties could not initially report anything out of fear. She became seriously ill at her home on Wednesday. She was admitted to Jessore General Hospital and died there on Thursday. The family of the deceased claims that she had previously told her son the entire incident at the hospital. An autopsy was conducted on the body on Friday.

On Saturday, the Narail Sadar Police Station police arrested one person in this incident. But this incident of torture on a minority woman has overshadowed the recent incidents of atrocities on Hindus in Bangladesh. Radharman Das, Vice President of Kolkata ISKCON, shared the post of the Bangladeshi media on his X handle and expressed concern. The hearing of the bail move for Hindu monk Chinmayakrishna Das Brahmachari, who was arrested in a sedition case, is scheduled for January 2.

What exactly happened in Narail? Several media outlets claim that the victim Basana Mallik’s son told them that his mother is a member of the Maijpara Union Parishad (Reserved seat for women) there in Bangladesh. Last Tuesday, after a program, a young man called her home, promising to pay the money owed. Allegedly, when the woman went to her house, a group of people gang-raped her there. They threatened her with two lakh taka. When the woman said she would go out and inform everyone about the matter, poison was forcibly poured into her mouth. Allegedly, she was admitted to Jessore General Hospital after she fell seriously ill after returning home. Her son told the media, ‘My mother died on my hands while I was narrating the entire incident. One Nazibul and another- elder son of Osman raped and killed my mother with the help of others. I want severe punishment for those who did all this to my mother.’

Jessore General Hospital Resident Medical Officer Bazlur Rashid said that it is known that the woman was poisoned after being raped. The family members are terrified as the accused in this incident have not been arrested till Saturday evening. However, Narail Sadar Police Station OC Sajedul Islam told the media, ‘The police have been active since the complaint was received. We are looking into the family’s complaint very seriously. We have already arrested one person. Subject to investigation, all those involved in this will be arrested. I hope the mystery of the incident will be unraveled soon.’

Not only Hindus, but also residents of the Christian community have been victims of violence a few days ago. A house of 17 people belonging to the Christian community was set on fire in Tangjhiri Tripura Para in Lama Upazila of Bandarban. However, fortunately, no one was killed in the incident. Again, in Chittagong, Bangladesh, a Hindu school teacher was forcibly removed from the school premises after being forced to resign, and the Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly, Shuvendu Adhikari, has posted a video on social media alleging that he was being thrown out. ‘Ei Soi’ has not verified the authenticity of this video, but such allegations have been increasing in the last few months. In this atmosphere, all concerned parties are watching what strict steps the Bangladesh government takes to stop violence against minorities before Chinmoy Krishna’s bail hearing on January 2.

The Indian government has already expressed concern over the way in which allegations of minority oppression are being raised one after another in the aftermath of Chinmoy Krishna’s arrest. India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Mishri has also clarified his position on this issue during his visit to Dhaka. The interim government led by Muhammad Yunus in Bangladesh has also given statistics on the steps taken to address minority oppression. But even then, with the way allegations of violence and oppression are being raised one after another, a section of the diplomatic community is questioning whether the Yunus administration is not being proactive enough.

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__Inputs from Agencies.