In this photograph taken on January 5, 2014, a Bangladeshi resident (L) wanting to vote is attacked by protestors in a field in Rajshahi, some 260 km from Dhaka.
BJP on Wednesday expressed concern over the continued attacks on Hindus in the post-election violence in Bangladesh and hoped India will take up the issue through diplomatic channels to bring stability in the region.
Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley said the attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh in post-election violence has threatened the already insecure Hindu minority in Bangladesh and hoped India's early response to help restore stability in the region, otherwise the consequences of a disturbed neighbourhood will spill into Indian boundaries.
"The post-election violence has started attacking the minority Hindu community. Houses have been burnt and individuals are being attacked. The already insecure Hindu minority is being threatened further.
"These are developments with which everyone in India particularly the Government of India should be concerned with. I hope we see a response from the Government of India," he said.
BJP Spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said the government of India should take up the issue through its diplomatic channels.
"There has been a series of attacks on minority Hindu community in post-election violence in Bangladesh. It is very worrying that the instability in the region may also affect India. BJP would like to express its concern.
"Though the ongoing situation is an internal matter of Bangladesh, the attacks on Hindus is a matter of worry. Their houses are being burnt, their property is being damaged and women are being targeted. We are sure Indian External Affairs Ministry will also raise the issue and pursue it through their diplomatic channels," she said.
"We hope that the political process in Bangladesh will stabilise and important political parties are in a position to settle their domestic political issues," he said.
Jaitley said media reports suggest that most of these attacks have taken place at the behest of the Jamat-e-Islami and even the Bangladesh Nationalist Party. "It is noteworthy that the Hindu population which was around 30 per cent at the time of Independence is currently between 10 to 12 per cent as per the recent estimates," he said.
The two leaders said the treatment of minority Hindus in Pakistan is also not too good and cases of atrocities on them have come across, especially on women who are being targeted for their conversion and cases of rapes have been reported.