AL caused 90pc harm to Hindus
Staff Reporter :
Birendra Nath Maitra, Secretary General of the Bangladesh Hindu League, said, fallen ruling party Awami League has caused 90 percent harm of the Hindu community of the country.
“I want to tell you all that if the Hindu community in Bangladesh has suffered any harm, at least 90 percent of that harm has been caused by the Awami League.
There was once a system of reservation for Hindus-separate elections with reserved seats-but it was the Awami League that abolished it,” Birendra Nath said.
He made these remarks on Sunday at a discussion meeting organized at the Zahur Hossain Chowdhury Hall of the National Press Club on the occasion of the 139th birth anniversary of language movement hero and martyr Dhirendranath Dutt.
Birendra Nath Maitra further said, “First, I want to ask you-since our name includes the word ‘League,’ does that mean we are the B team of the Awami League? You all know that in Bangladesh, only the Awami League has used the Hindus for its own benefit.
The Hindu minority in this country has always paid the price. They were never truly given a place on the boat (the Awami League’s electoral symbol). Rather, they were deliberately excluded from it.”
He added, “Those who have caused the harm are the very people whom the Hindus of Bangladesh once worshiped-placing them on divine pedestals, treating them like gods and goddesses.
But today, to break free from that deception, the Bangladesh Hindu League has risen. There are still nearly three crore (30 million) Hindus in Bangladesh. If we can unite, I believe we can play a major role in building this country. We want to live in peace and with dignity in this land.
“To my frightened and anxious Hindu brothers and sisters who are thinking of leaving the country, I want to assure you-do not leave. This land will one day be a land of peace. I say this to you in the name of God: you will not be deprived forever.”
“At one time, Sheikh Hasina went to London and said about the Hindus, ‘You cannot be a citizen of Bangladesh with one foot in India and the other in Bangladesh.’
I want to ask her-why did you then take refuge in that very India? For what reason? For only one reason-so that the Hindus of Bangladesh would think India gave her shelter, and therefore Sheikh Hasina is India’s person, not a representative of Bangladesh’s Hindus. We reject that notion. We will not accept it-never.
“We, the Hindus and Muslims of this country, are children of the same mother. We will not allow anyone to divide us. Therefore, no divisive politics will be allowed to turn the Bangladesh Hindu League into anyone’s proxy or agent.
The Hindu League was founded in 1984 precisely to protect the Hindus of this country from the Awami League’s clutches and its stepmotherly treatment.”
Freedom fighter Deepak Chandra Gupta, President of the Bangladesh Hindu Mahasabha, said.
“Martyr Dhirendranath Dutt was a shining symbol of secular spirit, a forerunner of humanistic and democratic values, and a fighter for the rights of the oppressed. In 1971, the Pakistani occupation forces brutally killed him. But they could not destroy his ideals or dreams.
“My appeal to the new generation is this: let us not confine his sacrifice to mere remembrance.
Let us be inspired by his ideals to protect human rights, build a secular Bangladesh, and create a society free from discrimination-preserving the spirit and legacy of the language movement.”
Leaders and activists from various Hindu religious organizations also spoke at the discussion organized by the Bangladesh Hindu League on the occasion of the 139th birth anniversary of language hero and martyr Dhirendranath Dutt.