Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday sought the deployment of United Nations (UN) peacekeepers in Bangladesh for the safety of minorities in the neighbouring country. Banerjee also called for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention in the matter. Her remarks came amid attacks on minorities, especially Hindus, in Bangladesh.
“These are my proposals. Let the Prime Minister give a statement on the matter and seek UN intervention,” the Chief Minister said after mentioning these two proposals on the floor of the state Assembly as reported by news agency IANS.
Taking a dig at the Centre, the West Bengal CM said that the union government has been silent on the Bangladesh issue for the last ten days. However, she also stated that the government would support the Centre in steps to stop illegal immigration.
"I do not want to speak about illegal infiltrations. This is entirely a matter of the Union government and we always accept the central decisions in the matter. But, the Union government has been silent on the Bangladesh issue for the last ten days. The ruling party (in India) here is demanding the sealing of borders and stopping the supply of food. We can do that if the Union government wants us to do that," she said quoted by the news agency.
Banrejee's statement came days after International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) priest Chinmoy Krishna Das was arrested by Bangladesh's interim government and filed a sedition case against him. On Sunday, a senior official of ISKCON claimed that the international peace bodies, including the UN, were indifferent to the attacks and atrocities on minority Hindus in Bangladesh, especially the ISKCON monks.
Meanwhile, on Saturday, Radharamn Das, Vice President and Spokesperson Iskcon Kolkata, claimed on Saturday that two more Hindu priests were arrested in Bangladesh.
BJP's Reaction:
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) called Banerjee over her stand over attackob Hindus in Bnagladesh as "crocodile's tears". “Mamata Banerjee should stop shedding crocodile tears for Hindus in Bangladesh…Not too long ago she had personally targeted monks and Hindu religious organisations like the Ramakrishna Mission, Bharat Sevashram Sangha and ISKCON in West Bengal, to consolidate her Muslim vote bank. Thousands of saffron-clad sadhus and lakhs of Hindu devotees had hit the streets in Kolkata, in protest,"BJP's Amit Malviya said in his X post.
MEA On Arrest Of Chinmoy Das And Attack On Hindus:
India, noting the increasing incidents of violence against minorities, has reacted strongly, saying it was the responsibility of the Bangladeshi government to protect the life and liberty of Hindus.
On November 26, New Delhi expressed concern over the monk's arrest and denial of bail, and asked Bangladesh to ensure the safety of Hindus and other minorities. India on Friday said the interim government in Bangladesh must live up to its responsibility of protecting all minorities as it expressed serious concern over the "surge" of extremist rhetoric and increasing incidents of violence against Hindus as well as attacks on temples.