2nd Hindu Priest Arrested In Bangladesh Amid Protests: ISKCON Member

Days after the arrest of Spiritual leader Chinmoy Krishna Das, another Hindu priest was arrested in Bangladesh’s Chattogram, sources said on Saturday. The arrested priest was identified as Shyam Das Prabhu, who reportedly went to meet Chinmoy Krishna Das in jail.

He was arrested without any official warrant, the sources said, adding that the practice allows authorities to detain someone and release them later.

Radharamn Das, Vice-President and Spokesperson, ISKCON Kolkata also posted about the monk’s arrest on X (formally Twitter) on Friday, and said, “Another Brahmachari Sri Shyam Das Prabhu was arrested by Chattogram Police today.”

https://twitter.com/RadharamnDas/status/1862532767788999062?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Hindu Monk’s Arrest & Violence In Bangladesh

Hindu priest, Chinmoy Krishna Das, a former member of the International Society of Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) of Bangladesh, was arrested on Monday in connection with a sedition case. His arrest triggered protests by Hindu community members in various locations in Bangladesh, including in the capital Dhaka and Chattogram.

Chinmoy Krishna Das was denied bail by a Chattogram court on Tuesday, which followed clashes between the police and protestors demanding his release. Assistant public prosecutor Saiful Islam was killed in the clashes. 

Bangladesh police have so far arrested nine persons in connection with the lawyer’s murder, police said on Saturday. They were arrested after a case was filed against 46 persons, mostly cleanliness workers belonging to the minority Hindu community.

Meanwhile, three Hindu temples were vandalised by a slogan-shouting mob on Friday in Chattogram, which has witnessed protests and violence since a former ISKCON member was booked under sedition charges.

The attack took place around 2:30 pm in the port city’s Harish Chandra Munsef Lane, where the Shantaneshwari Matri Temple, the nearby Shoni Temple, and the Shantaneshwari Kalibari Temple were targeted, news portal BDNews24.com reported.

“A group of several hundred slogan-shouting people threw brickbats at the temples, damaging the Shoni Temple and the gates of the other two temples,” the news portal quoted temple authorities as saying.

Kotwali Police Station chief Abdul Karim confirmed the attack, saying that assailants attempted to damage the temples.

Violence Against Minorities In Bangladesh

Chinmoy Krishna Das’s arrest came amid tensions over minority rights in Bangladesh, which has seen widespread political violence since former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s ouster. Since the ouster of former PM Sheikh Hasina, the new military-backed interim government led by Mohammed Yunus has faced criticism for failing to curb a spike in violence against minorities. 

Hindus comprise approximately 8 per cent of Bangladesh’s 170 million people.