Activist Rabinder Ghosh raises alarm over "ethnic cleansing" of Hindus in Bangladesh

Ghosh's organization, Bangladesh Minority Watch, has provided aid to affected individuals, but he criticised the interim government for failing to protect them from Islamic fundamentalism.

"Our human rights organization, Bangladesh Minority Watch and Bangladesh Human Rights for Congress for Bangladesh Minorities, has intervened and provided shelter, food, utensils, and everything necessary. However, the problem is that the government remains silent, which amounts to ethnic cleansing," he told ANI.

Ghosh reported forced conversions of Hindus to Islam, accompanied by torture, intimidation, rape, and gang rape. The Hindu population is declining daily due to these atrocities.

"We have appealed to the Bangladesh government, highlighting the situation and requesting their intervention to protect us from Islamic fundamentalism. Unfortunately, the government has not taken any action to safeguard us," he said.

"We have elaborately described the situation to the Bangladesh government, but unfortunately, no one has come forward to speak about the torture of religious minorities, particularly Hindus. We are facing great difficulties in our country," he added.

There are different political parties in the country. But it is not certain when the election will be held.

"The government claims that elections will be held in January or February, but there is no specific date. This is a major problem," he said.

Ghosh demanded equal rights for everyone, including minorities, Hindus, and indigenous communities.

"Hindus are not in a position to go to the other countries also. This is the problem. So we as a human rights defender, we want survival of the people of the country. Not only for the minority community, we want peace and tolerance in the country. We want peaceful coexistence in the country, but this is very unfortunate," he said.

"We demand equal rights for everyone, including minorities, Hindus, ethnic minorities, and indigenous communities. We also demand punishment for perpetrators, but due to impunity, justice is not being served. The court is not providing justice, despite our appeals," he emphasized.

Ghosh urged the international community to intervene to ensure the safety and security of minorities in Bangladesh and emphasized the need for punishment for those responsible, citing impunity as a major obstacle to justice.

"We urge the Bangladesh government and the international community to intervene immediately to ensure the safety and security of minorities and punish the perpetrators. Otherwise, ethnic cleansing may occur," he warned.

"In one instance, a Muslim student was arrested for speaking out in support of minority people. There are many such incidents that highlight the need for our survival and protection," he added.

The current interim government in Bangladesh was formed under the leadership of Muhammad Yunus after the ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in a student-led uprising in August last year. (ANI)