Hindus leaving country for lack of security: Gayeshwar

BNP standing committee member Gayeshwar Chandra Roy on Friday alleged that the Hindus, the largest religious minority in Bangladesh, are gradually leaving the country for lack of security, reports UNB.

"People of all classes and professions, regardless of religion and caste, came together in 1971 to fight for the independence of the country holding a spirit that persecution, exploitation and discrimination against caste and religion by Pakistanis are not conducive to a healthy political state," he said.

He, however, regretted that the members of the Hindus have gradually been leaving Bangladesh after independence.

The BNP leader made the remarks while speaking at a press conference at the Jatiya Press Club arranged by the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Kalyan Front.

Gayeshwar, the chief advisor of the platform, said the Hindus are not now leaving the country by marching together in groups like in the 1964 riots. "But they're leaving every day and we may not guess it. If we look at the statistics, we see that the number of Hindus is gradually decreasing."

He said around 37 per cent population of the territory of Bangladesh were Hindus in the 60s, but it has now come down to less than 10 per cent. "That means the number of Hindus is decreasing gradually."

About the reasons for the exodus of the minority community, the BNP leader said Hindus lack social security and are being deprived of their civil rights enshrined in the constitution.

Besides, he also said the administration does not give much importance to the complaints of religious minorities.