India supports free, fair and inclusive election in Bangladesh as BNP’s Tarique Rahman returns home

POBNEWS24 Dhaka, Dec 26, 2025 : The Indian government has expressed its “deep concern” over the “continued persecution and hostility against minorities by extremists” in Bangladesh.
In a briefing on Friday, Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “The continued hostility of extremists against minorities, including Hindus, Christians and Buddhists, in Bangladesh is of deep concern.”
He said, “We condemn the recent brutal killing of a Hindu youth in Mymensingh. We hope that those involved in the crime will be brought to justice.”
He said, “Independent sources have collected information about 2,900 incidents of violence against minorities during the tenure of the interim government. This includes killings, arson and land grabbing.”
India’s relations with the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus, which came to power after the Sheikh Hasina government was exiled in India due to the student uprising, are strained.
Meanwhile, Dhaka has been calling the Indian government’s statements and various reports in the country’s media on minority oppression in Bangladesh as ‘exaggerations’. The interim government is saying that ‘political violence’ is being shown as an incident of minority oppression.
Meanwhile, the Indian government has condemned the beating to death and burning of the body of a Hindu youth, Dipu Chandra Das, on charges of blasphemy in Mymensingh on the night of December 18 and called for the safety of minorities.
Following this incident, various Hindutva organizations protested around various Bangladesh missions in India. Among them, there was a protest in front of the Bangladesh High Commission and the High Commissioner’s residence in the diplomatic area of ​​Delhi on the night of December 20. Dhaka also threatened the High Commissioner at that time.
Meanwhile, leaders and activists of Hindutva organizations have also vandalized the Bangladesh Visa Center in Siliguri in addition to the protest against the killing of Dipu Das.
In response to questions from reporters that night in front of the Bangladesh High Commission, spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “We have seen misleading propaganda in some media outlets in Bangladesh. The truth is that on December 20, 20 to 25 youth gathered in front of the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi and raised slogans protesting the brutal murder of Dipu Das and calling for the safety of minorities in Bangladesh.”
“There was no attempt to breach the security cordon or create a destabilizing situation.”
Describing the incident, Jaiswal said, “The group was dispersed by the police personnel present at the spot within minutes. The video of the incident has been released.”
Stating that India is “keeping an eye” on the changing situation in Bangladesh, Jaiswal said, “Our officials are in touch with the Bangladesh government. We have been strongly concerned about the attacks on minorities. We also call for those responsible for the brutal murder of Dipu Das to be brought to justice.”
Criticizing India’s stance, Bangladesh said, “We reject the Indian government’s attempt to portray an isolated attack on a Bangladeshi citizen, who is a Hindu, as an attack on the entire minority community.”
“The Bangladesh government has swiftly arrested the suspects in this incident. The inter-religious situation in Bangladesh is better than in many other regions of South Asia. Bangladesh believes that it is the responsibility of all governments in the region to ensure the safety of minorities in their respective countries.”
Meanwhile, anti-India protests erupted in Bangladesh after news spread on social media that Faisal Karim Masood, the main suspect in the murder case of Inquilab Manch spokesperson Sharif Osman Hadi, had fled to India.
Police prevented a protest from Rampura towards the Indian High Commission in Dhaka. Protests also took place around the Indian missions in Rajshahi, Chittagong and Khulna.
After Hadi’s death on December 18, protests and stone-pelting took place in front of the house of the Assistant High Commissioner of India in Chittagong.
On December 14, the Ministry of External Affairs summoned Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma in Dhaka and asked for the return of Sheikh Hasina, who is in Delhi, and sought cooperation in arresting those who opened fire on Hadi.
The government said that although several people have been detained in connection with the shooting of Hadi, the location of Faisal has not yet been identified.
To a question regarding anti-India statements from Bangladesh, Randhir Jaiswal said that the Indian government has issued several statements in this regard in the last few days.
‘We reject the false statements being made in Bangladesh. You will understand that it is the responsibility of the Bangladesh government to look into the law and order and security situation in Bangladesh or whatever is happening there. The statement that the situation is being taken in a different direction is completely false and we reject it.’
To a question on Bangladesh-India relations and the 13th national elections, Randhir Jaiswal said that India’s position on Bangladesh has remained the same and clear.
‘India wants to strengthen relations with the people of Bangladesh. We are in favor of peace and stability in Bangladesh.’
Regarding the elections, he said, “We are in favor of free, fair, inclusive and participatory elections in Bangladesh, which must be held in a peaceful environment.” In response to a question about the return of BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman to the country after almost a decade and a half of exile, he said, “India supports free, fair and inclusive elections in Bangladesh. This incident should be seen from that perspective.”