Page 27 - Bangladesh

Racket facilitating entry of Bangladeshi nationals busted in Delhi, 4 held

Delhi Police said it has uncovered a large-scale illegal immigration racket involving Bangladeshi nationals and arrested four people, including two persons from the neighbouring country who allegedly entered India illegally, an official said on Thursday. The other two arrested are accused of facilitating the Bangladeshi nationals' unlawful immigration and document fabrication. The immigration racket involved handlers in Bangladesh and India who handled transportation and others in India who helped forge fake documents for their stay in India. Police have also seized fake Aadhaar and PAN cards, Indian passport applications, and other documents. Police said they have also discovered "donkey routes" via Meghalaya and Assam in the border states that the two foreign nationals used. Joint Commissioner of Police (Southern Range) Sanjay Kumar Jain said Delhi Police has apprehended two Bangladeshi nationals -- Bilal Hosen and his wife Sapna -- along with two Indian nationals -- Aminur Ishla

Mamata Banerjee alleges BSF letting 'Bangladeshi terrorists' enter Bengal

Calling it the 'blueprint' of central government, Mamata Banerjee alleged that the BSF was allowing 'Bangladeshi terrorists' to cross the border to create instability in West Bengal

Hindu monk Chinmoy Das' bail plea rejected by court in Bangladesh

Chattogram's Metropolitan Sessions court denied bail to Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari, arrested on November 25 in connection with a sedition case

Bangladesh's political turmoil gives Bengal BJP's membership drive a fillip

The violence against Hindus in Bangladesh has provided a fillip to West Bengal BJP's membership drive, as the party struggles to meet its ambitious one crore target, while campaiging against the atrocities on minorities across the border to consolidate Hindu support in the state. Attacks on the minority community on the other side of the border has provided the party with a rallying point, as it seeks to counter challenges posed by organisational gaps, internal discord, and the ruling Trinamool Congress's (TMC) political dominance. Both TMC and BJP are leveraging the Bangladesh issue to shape the political narrative ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections. The Bangladesh turmoil, where Hindu minorities have been at the receiving end, has accelerated the membership drive, as people see the BJP as the only party capable of ensuring stability and are afraid of similar events under TMC's rule, which is known for its minority appeasement, state BJP president Sukanta Majumdar told PTI. Top

Awami League may contest elections unless banned, says Bangladesh CEC

Bangladesh's Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin has said that ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League may participate in elections unless the government or the judiciary issues a ban against the party. The chief election commissioner (CEC) said this during a meeting with election officials at the Chittagong Circuit House on Monday, The Dhaka Tribune newspaper reported. Nasir Uddin also assured that the Election Commission runs with complete independence and faces no external pressure. We are committed to taking all necessary steps to ensure a fair and transparent election, he added. The CEC also acknowledged the issue of fake voters in previous elections and attributed a decline in voter registration to mistrust in the voting process. He announced plans to initiate a voter list update soon to address these concerns. The voter list will be updated within the next six months. This time, elections will not follow previous patterns. Since August 5, there has been .

Protesters in Bangladesh demand Proclamation of July Uprising by Jan 15

The "March for Unity" began Tuesday afternoon at the Central Shaheed Minar, with participants observing a minute of silence to honor those who lost their lives in the July protests

Maharashtra ATS arrests 9 Bangladeshis for illegal stay, 43 held in a month

The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has arrested nine Bangladeshi nationals for illegally entering India and staying in the country without proper documents, officials said. With this, the ATS has arrested 43 Bangladeshi nationals in 19 cases last month as part of a special drive, an official said on Tuesday. The latest action was taken with the help of local police in Mumbai, Nashik, Nanded and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in the last four days. Nine Bangladeshi nationals -- eight males and one female -- were arrested, he said. The accused got Aadhaar cards made using forged documents, the official said. Police have registered five cases against them under the Foreigners Act and other relevant legal provisions, he added.

Yunus pays tribute to Manmohan Singh at Indian High Commission in B'desh

Professor Yunus visited the Indian High Commission in Dhaka and placed a floral wreath at the portrait of late PM Manmohan Singh

Bangladesh's interim govt to announce proclamation of July uprising

Bangladesh's interim government led by Muhammad Yunus has announced that it has decided to prepare a proclamation of July uprising, a day after it distanced itself from a proposed declaration with an identical title by the Anti-Discrimination Students Movement that led to an upheaval four months ago. We hope within few days the proclamation will be prepared with the participation and consensus of all and presented before the nation, Shafiqul Alam, Press Secretary to the chief adviser of the interim government of Bangladesh, Muhammad Yunus, told reporters in a midnight press conference. Addressing reporters in front of Yunus' official Jamuna residence, Alam said the declaration would be based on the views of all participating students, political parties, and stakeholders, including the Anti-Discrimination Students Movement that led to the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League regime on August 5. Alam said the government took the initiative to prepare the proposed ...

Global uprisings: Protests and movements which shook the world in 2024

Kenya's cost-of-living crisis, to martial law in South Korea. Here's a look at major protests that erupted across the globe in 2024

Bangladeshi Americans urge Trump to protect minorities in their country

Describing the ongoing atrocities against religious and ethnic minorities in Bangladesh as an existential threat from Islamist forces, a coalition of Bangladeshi American Hindus, Buddhists, and Christians has urged President-elect Donald Trump to intervene and help protect minority communities in the country. Urging Trump to secure the immediate release of monk Chinmoy Krishna Das, who they said has been falsely imprisoned on sedition charges, the group on Sunday said Bangladesh risks descending into radicalisation, which could have far-reaching effects not only for South Asia but for the rest of the world as well. Das, a former ISKCON leader, was arrested at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka on November 25. A court in Chattogram sent him to jail, rejecting his bail petition as he was accused of a sedition charge for allegedly disrespecting the country's flag. The hearing in the case will be held on January 2, 2025. In a memorandum addressed to Trump, the group ...

Minority organisation in B'desh demands release of arrested Hindu monk

A minority group in Bangladesh on Sunday called for the "immediate release" of Chinmoy Krishna Das, asserting that the case against the arrested Hindu monk is "false" and "harassing", according to a media report. Das, a former ISKCON leader, was arrested at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka on November 25. A court in Chattogram sent him to jail, rejecting his bail petition as he was accused of a sedition charge for allegedly disrespecting the country's flag. The hearing in the case will be held on January 2, 2025. The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council (BHBCOP) released a statement demanding his immediate release, the Prothom Alo news portal reported. Signed by the BHBCOP's acting General Secretary Manindra Kumar Nath, the statement said that the sedition case filed against 19 people, including Das, was false and harassing. It called for the release of all those arrested in the case, according to the report. Ties between New Delhi and Dhaka have ..

Could delay polls: BNP criticises Yunus' idea to lower voting age to 17

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) on Saturday said that Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus' suggestion to set the minimum voting age at 17 would put pressure on the Election Commission and could delay the election process. Yunus, 84, who was sworn-in to lead the interim government after the ouster of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina in August, on Friday suggested that the minimum voter age should be lowered to 17 years, The Dhaka Tribune newspaper reported. In a video message played in an election dialogue, Yunus said, To give their (youth) opinion on their own future, I think the voting age for them should be fixed at 17 years." BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, during a discussion at the Jatiya Press Club here, said the chief adviser's suggestion to lower the voting age to 17 means a new voter list would have to be prepared. "Now, people will fear that even more time will be wasted and further delays will occur, he was quoted as saying. Alamgir said there is a

Bangladesh targets Hasina with new corruption probe, extradition plea

The Anti-Corruption Commission said Thursday it will investigate Hasina and five other family members for allegedly misappropriating government land in Purbachal

Hindu-Americans in US launch B'desh religious violence awareness campaign

Outraged at the continuing anti-Hindu violence in Bangladesh, Hindu Americans in the Silicon Valley have launched a massive awareness "Ask Yunus Why" campaign that includes expensive billboards and large hoardings in this part of California. The first billboard of the campaign by the United Hindu Council was unveiled at a prominent location on 880-N and Market Street in Oakland before Christmas. Over the next three months, digital billboards at six key locations across the Bay Area, including high-traffic zones and major bridges, will display messages designed to raise awareness and spark conversations around this critical issue, a media release said. The harm and violence being perpetrated on the Hindu minority and other minorities in Bangladesh under the governance of Mohammad Yunus is highly regrettable. He and his government should be inclusive of all Bangladeshis and stop oppressing the minorities based on their religion, the council said in a statement. On behalf of the ...

China approves construction of world's largest dam over Brahmaputra River

The dam will be built in one of the rainiest parts of mainland China bringing bountiful flows of water.

Hasina's son accuses Yunus govt of using judiciary for political witch hunt

Sanjeeb Wazed, son of deposed Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina, has accused the Muhammad Yunus led interim government of weaponising the judiciary for carrying out a political witch hunt against the Awami League leadership. Wazed's allegations, as a long post on X, came two days after the interim government on Monday said it has sent a diplomatic note to New Delhi seeking Hasina's extradition from India. Hasina, 77, has been living in India since August 5 when she fled Bangladesh following a massive student-led protest that toppled her Awami League's (AL) 16-year regime. Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has issued arrest warrants for Hasina and several former Cabinet ministers, advisers, and military and civil officials for crimes against humanity and genocide. The judges and prosecutors appointed by the unelected Yunus led regime to conduct farcical trial process through International Crimes Tribunal makes it a political witch hunt that forsakes justice and

STF of Assam Police arrest 2 more members of Ansarullah Bangla Team

On December 21, the STF had arrested eight members of ABT, an affiliate of Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) terrorist organisation

Bangladesh turmoil casts shadow on key connectivity projects in Tripura

The sudden collapse of the Sheikh Hasina government in Bangladesh has cast a shadow on key connectivity and trade projects in Tripura, which is likely to have far-reaching implications on the northeastern state's growth engine in the year ahead. Dark clouds of uncertainty loom large on the fate of 'Maitri Setu' (friendship bridge), built over River Feni in South Tripura's Sabroom sub-division, despite its joint inauguration by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his the then Bangladeshi counterpart, Sheikh Hasina, in March 2021. The 1.9-km-long bridge, constructed at a cost of Rs 133 crore, promises a shorter and more economical alternate connectivity between the Northeast and Kolkata via Chittagong and Mongla ports in Bangladesh with Sabroom as a gateway to the Southeast Asian nations. However, barely days before passenger movement between India and Bangladesh through the bridge was scheduled to be flagged off, a deadly student uprising in August threw the country into disarray and ..

Hasina's son claims Yunus using judiciary as tool for political witch hunt

Sanjeeb Wazed, son of deposed Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina, has accused the Muhammad Yunus led interim government of weaponising the judiciary for carrying out a political witch hunt against the Awami League leadership. Wazed's allegations, as a long post on X, came two days after the interim government on Monday said it has sent a diplomatic note to New Delhi seeking Hasina's extradition from India. Hasina, 77, has been living in India since August 5 when she fled Bangladesh following a massive student-led protest that toppled her Awami League's (AL) 16-year regime. Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has issued arrest warrants for Hasina and several former Cabinet ministers, advisers, and military and civil officials for crimes against humanity and genocide. The judges and prosecutors appointed by unelected Yunus led regime to conduct farcical trial process through International Crimes Tribunal makes it a political witch hunt that forsakes justice and mark