Dhaka urges Delhi to take steps to fully protect minority Muslims

Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam on Thursday said the interim government strongly protested India’s attempts to involve Bangladesh in communal violence in Murshidabad, West Bengal, and urged the neighbouring country to take steps to ‘fully protect’ the minority Muslim population there.

“We strongly refute any attempts to implicate Bangladesh in the communal violence in Murshidabad,” he said on the sidelines of a press briefing at Foreign Service Academy.

Alam said the Bangladesh government condemned attacks on Muslims causing loss of lives and properties, reports BSS.

“We urge the Government of India and West Bengal to take all steps to fully protect the minority Muslim population,” he added.

The violence broke out last week in the Muslim-dominated Murshidabad district during a protest over the Waqf (Amendment) Act. The protests swept across Malda, Murshidabad, South 24 Parganas and Hooghly districts, leading to arson, stone-pelting and road blockades, according to reports of Indian media.

Preliminary investigations of the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs reportedly indicated the involvement of alleged Bangladeshi miscreants in the violence.