Violence against Hindus in Bangladesh: Right-wing group protests in Meerut

Meerut (UP), Aug 8 (PTI) Workers and activists of right wing groups in Uttar Pradesh's Meerut on Thursday protested the violence against Hindus in Bangladesh and said those from the community persecuted in the crisis-hit nation should be immediately given Indian citizenship.

The protestors, scores of whom gathered under the Kankarkheda bypass flyover here, also burnt an effigy of "fundamentalists in Bangladesh".

"We demand from the prime minister that all the Sanatani Hindus living in Bangladesh should be given Indian citizenship with immediate effect. The Sanatani Hindus living in Bangladesh those who want to live in India should be brought here otherwise their safety should be ensured there itself," Sachin Sirohi, a protestor, said.

Separately, the Hindu Mahasabha office-bearers here handed over a memorandum to the district administration. The memorandum was addressed to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, appealing for the government's intervention in stopping the crisis in Bangladesh and for security of Hindus there.

Earlier this week, neighbouring Bangladesh descended into chaos as its Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina surreptitiously resigned and fled the country in a military aircraft while the army stepped in to fill the power vacuum by announcing an interim government.

After Hasina's departure, hundreds broke into her residence, vandalising and looting the interiors, providing dramatic expression to the anti-government protests that have killed more than 400 people in a fortnight.

According to news reports, Hindus, their establishments and temples have also been at the receiving end of the violence and vandalism in restive Bangladesh. PTI