Barak organizations protest against atrocity on minority in Bangladesh

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

 SILCHAR, July 20: Deeply concerned at the recent developments in Bangladesh centering round the terrorists who have targeted minority communities of Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists and Christians and the ratiolists as well as right thinking people irrespective of their religion, Bengali Association for Social Empowerment (BASE) and Matri Se (MS) based at Lakhipur today brought out an impressive protest rally against the ongoing atrocities and killings. In a memorandum addressed to Prime Minister rendra Modi, which was sent through the sub divisiol officer, it has been pointed out that the tales of atrocities on the minorities is not a new one and this phenomenon has been prevalent since the partition of Bengal in 1905.

Harassments, abduction of women, forcible conversion, murder, dacoity, threat, riot and organized attack for carrying out ethnic-cleansing have become order of the day. All these have been going on by the Jihadi Wahabbi forces with the sole objective of establishing Caliphate. All these destructive and disruptive elements are backed by home grown terrorists, the memorandum states. It is true the Government of Bangladesh has suppressed the movements, but the jihadis have gone underground and are waiting for the opportune moment.

 The memorandum giving a background against which Bengal was partitioned to establish Islamic state of Pakistan lamented the failure of the Indian leaders of the time to preempt the partition of the motherland. This has resulted in untold miseries and sufferings of the minorities. Nehru Government of the time did nothing to save them. The partition forced millions of people to take shelter in different parts of the country. Most unfortute, they continue to be looked down upon as refugees. Even the districts of Sylhet, Khul, Rongpur and Chittagong Hill Tract with Hindu and Buddhist majority were taken away from India by treacherous means.

 For more than a decade now, radical Islamic terrorists have set up strong foothold in Bangladesh and unleashed a reign of terror. Not only the members of BNP or Jamaat-e-Islami but even the leaders and members of Awami League have been found involved in atrocities against the minorities. What is most worrisome is the close coordition of Bangladesh based terrorists with ISIS. There is every reason to believe after they take hold of Bangladesh next target will be Assam and other north eastern states.

 In the enveloping situation, both the organizations, BASE and MS, while expressing their unhappiness with the response of the Central Government to Bangladesh crisis have rather favoured India drawing the attention of the intertiol community towards it. The Government of India should have also moved for deploying United tions Peace Keeping Force in Bangladesh to handle the terrorist activities. If the Government of India cannot protect the minorities of Bangladesh, who will come to their rescue?

 Considering the threat-perception against minorities, the organizations have suggested raising the affairs of Bangladesh in intertiol forum on priority basis. UN Peace Keeping Force has to be deployed to crush the jihadi network. Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists and Christians of Bangladesh should be given refuge in India and provided with citizenship and rehabilitation. Moreover, the refugees, according to the intertiol convention and Chapter of United tions Organization on Refugees, should get their tural and fundamental rights to live with honour and dignity.

 Besides the citizens of Lakhipur town and adjacent areas, students from different educatiol institutions participated in the protest rally organized by BASE and MS. Various NGOs also supported the rally. The protesters carrying banners and play cards after assembling at the meeting place at Lakhipur market marched through the main streets of the town to the office of the SDO (Civil) to handover the memorandum. Biswajit Roy, general secretary, BASE, and Moti Dutta, general secretary, MS, organized the rally.