Pakistan or Bangladesh, where are Hindus more secure, know what is the expert view

The flame of the Durga Puja pandal in Bangladesh has reached New Delhi. The Indian Ministry of External Affairs has expressed satisfaction over the action of the Government of Bangladesh. To maintain communal harmony in Bangladesh, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has reminded the people of the country about Hindu-Muslim unity during independence. Let us know why Sheikh Hasina remembered the matter of the liberation struggle. What is the number of minority Hindus in Bangladesh? Will this incident affect the relations between the two countries?

Hindu minority safer in Bangladesh than in Pakistan

1- Prof. Harsh V Pant said that the condition of Hindu minorities in Bangladesh is not the same as in neighboring Pakistan. The government takes care of the interests of the Hindu minorities in Bangladesh. He said that the latest example of this is the statement of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Pro. Pant said that the situation of Hindu minorities in Pakistan is quite the opposite. Radicals run power parallel to the government in Pakistan. They have a lot of power over the Pak government. That is why the government is unable to speak openly about the interests of the Hindu minorities. The condition of Hindus in Pakistan is not hidden from anyone.

2- Prof. Pant said that minorities are subjected to atrocities daily in Pakistan. In Pakistan, fundamentalists attack Hindu places of worship daily. All this happens on the co-operation of the government or the government is helpless in all these matters. She is not in a position to take any action against the fundamentalists. He said that the condition of minorities in Pakistan can be gauged from the fact that the population of minorities has decreased there. There are reports of forced conversions every day. However, he acknowledged that extremism has dominated Bangladesh in the last few years, but the situation is not bad. He said that it will not have any impact on India-Bangladesh relations. The Government of India is fully satisfied that the Hasina Government has taken adequate steps for the safety and communal harmony of the Hindu minorities.

3- Prime Minister Hasina said that in the liberation war of 1971, the people of Hindu and Muslim communities fought shoulder to shoulder. He said that Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib ur Rahman had made Bangladesh a secular state. He said that Bangabandhu also wanted that people of all sects in Bangladesh should practice their religion freely. Hasina said that we aim to make Bangladesh peaceful. There will be no place for terrorism in this country. He said that we will follow the same path for which Bangladesh was created. We want Bangladesh to be free from poverty and unemployment.

Differences emerged on the Citizenship Amendment Act

Significantly, in the year 1971, Bangladesh got independence. The Indian Army played an important role in this. At that time the Pakistan Army in Bangladesh surrendered to General Jagjit Singh Arora of the Indian Army. Bangladesh came into existence only after that. Since then India and Bangladesh have had cordial relations. However, in the year 2019, relations between Bangladesh and India got strained when the Central Government passed the Citizenship Amendment Act. Hasina had refused to even meet the High Commissioner of India who was there for several months.

About 8.5 percent of Hindus in Bangladesh's population of 149 million

According to the 2011 census, Hindus constitute about 8.5 percent of Bangladesh's population of 149 million. There is a large population of people of the Hindu community in many other districts of Bangladesh including the Comilla district. In the area of ​​Comilla where the incident took place, Hindus and Muslims have lived in harmony for decades. People from the Muslim section also visit the pandals during Durga Puja. For this reason, there is no guard in the puja pandals here at night.

Nearly 3,721 attacks on Hindu community in Bangladesh in nine years

Significantly, in the last nine years, there have been around 3,721 attacks on the Hindu community in Bangladesh. 2021 has been the deadliest year ever in the last five years. At least 1,678 cases of vandalism and arson have been reported on Hindu temples, idols, and places of worship in the same period, the Dhaka Tribune reported, citing a report published online. In addition, 18 Hindu families have been attacked in the last three years. The worst in the last nine years was in 2014 when 1,201 houses and establishments of minorities were vandalized by miscreants.