Prime Minister Narendra Modi
India hopes Dhaka will address Hefazat's anti-Modi protests
India Friday hoped that the Bangladesh government would aptly address the challenges posed by protests spearheaded by Hefazat-e-Islam, an prominent Islamist group, in Chittagong during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent visit to the neighbouring country.
Modi was in Bangladesh on March 26-27 to attend the golden jubilee celebrations of the country's independence and the birth centenary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
But the Indian PM's visit triggered violent protests in several parts of Bangladesh, leaving at least 12 people dead. In the city of Chittagong, the protests were led by Hefazat-e-Islam.
Also read: Hefazat’s day-long hartal ends amid violence, clashes
"As far as the violence is concerned, we have always been against fundamentalism and extremism. We are confident that the Bangladesh government will address the challenge," Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi told the media in Delhi.
Even though Hefazat-e-Islam claims to be a “non-political” outfit, the group has gained prominence after the fall of Jamaat-e-Islami, Bangladesh’s largest Islamist political party.
Also read: Hefazat activists stage demo in Chattogram; Hartal tomorrow
Apparently making it clear that the protests by Hefazat-e-Islam would not cast any shadow on the amicable ties between India and Bangladesh, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson said: "Modi's visit to Bangladesh had facilitated significant decisions to reinforce the legacy of 1971 and this is in furtherance of India-Bangladesh bilateral cooperation."
Ahead of his two-day visit to Dhaka, Modi tweeted: “Our partnership with Bangladesh is an important pillar of our Neighbourhood First policy, and we are committed to further deepen and diversify it. We will continue to support Bangladesh’s remarkable development journey, under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s dynamic leadership."
Four killed in clashes with cops in Chattogram
Four people were killed and at least 15 others injured in clashes between Hefazat-e-Islam activists and police at Hathazari in Chattogram district on Friday.
Police and witnesses said Hefazat activists brought out a procession after Jum'a prayers protesting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bangladesh visit.
At one stage, they took position in front of Hathazari Model Police Station and started throwing brick chips at the law enforcers.
As police tried to disperse the protesters, they engaged in clashes.
The agitators attacked the thana compound and Hathazari land office and set fire to a vehicle, forcing the law enforcers to fire teargas shells to bring the situation under control.
Also read: Allama Shafi resigns from Hathazari Madrasa
As police failed to disperse the protestors despite an hour of their efforts, they fired several rounds of bullets, leaving at least 20 people injured.
Of the injured, three Hefazat activists and a pedestrian were declared dead after they had been taken to Chattogram Medical College Hospital (CMCH).
The dead were in deified as Hathazari Madrasa students Mirazul Islam, Rabiul Islam, Jamil and local resident Abdullah.
Five other injured people were admitted to the hospital in critical condition.
Alauddin Talukder, officer-in-charge of Chattogram Medical College Hospital Police Outpost, said nine people with bullet wounds were taken to the CMCH from Hathazari as of 4:30pm. “Four of them died while the rest are undergoing treatment.”
Additional Superintendent of Police (Hathazari circle) Shahadat Hossain said the police station came under attack suddenly. “We’ve brought the situation under control.”
Officer-in-charge (OC) of Hathazari Police Station Rafiqul Islam said the Hefazat followers tried to stage demonstrations protesting the Indian Prime visit to Bangladesh.
Also read: Govt shuts Hathazari Madrasa
“As we tried to stop them, they entered the police station and unleashed serious vandalism there,” he said.
The OC also said the protesters also hurled brick chips and stones towards police without any provocation.
Ruhul Amin, upazila nirbahi officer (UNO) of Hathazari upazila administration, said the Hefazat activists attacked the local land office following the attack on the police station.
He said the rowdy protestors vandalised the land office, destroyed its files and documents in fire. “They also set ablaze a vehicle of the land office and then attacked bungalows and carried out massive destruction there.”
BCCI chief Sourav Ganguly to join BJP next week?
Rumours are doing the rounds that India's cricket board chief Sourav Ganguly will join the country's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rally in the poll-bound state of West Bengal's capital Kolkata next week.
Twitter suspends more India accounts amid free speech debate
Twitter said on Wednesday that it has suspended a portion of Indian accounts after it was served with several separate blocking orders by India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology in the last 10 days related to massive farmer protests.
1 tweet from Rihanna on farmer protests gets India incensed
It took just one tweet from Rihanna to anger the Indian government and supporters of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party. The pop star linked a news article in a tweet drawing attention to the massive farmer protests that have gripped India for more than two months.
India rolls out world's largest Covid vaccination drive
India Saturday rolled out the world's largest Covid-19 inoculation drive, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging citizens not to pay heed to rumours regarding the safety and efficacy of the vaccines.
India’s new coronavirus below 60,000 for 5th day
For the fifth day, India has reported below 60,000 new coronavirus cases as the promise of a free COVID-19 vaccine turned into a key state election issue.
Coronavirus: India reports over 83,000 cases
India on Tuesday confirmed more than 83,000 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, pushing its caseload to nearly 5 million.
India stays home in 'people's curfew' to stem coronavirus
The typically boisterous streets of India's capital fell silent on Sunday as the country observed a 14-hour "people's curfew" that Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for in a national address to stem the rising coronavirus caseload.
Modi likely to arrive on Mar 17; Shringla due Monday
Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla arrives here on Monday morning to finalise things ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit this month.