'Chalo Bangladesh': Protesters nearly cross India's Assam border to avenge alleged attacks on minority Hindus

The BSF and police dispersed the crowd who were chanting slogans - 'Jai Shri Ram', 'Yunus Sarkar Hai Hai' and 'Yunus Murdabad' - while carrying the tricolour and saffron flags.

The international India-Bangladesh border in Assam's Sribhumi district in the weekend saw a crowd of about 40,000 people who had gathered to protest against the alleged attacks on minority Hindus in the neighbouring country.

The crowd during their 'Chalo Bangladesh' protest, headed by Sanatani Aikya Mancha, demanded the immediate release of ISKCON priest Chinmoy Krishna Das.

The protest commenced in Sutarkandi area and went on until 3 pm.

A three-tier security cordon managed to disperse the crowd by using batons and prevented the illegal entry of the people into the neighbouring country.

Reportedly, the Border Security Force (BSF) and police dispersed the crowd who were chanting slogans - 'Jai Shri Ram', 'Yunus Sarkar Hai Hai' and 'Yunus Murdabad' - while carrying the tricolour and saffron flags.

A man from Assam's Cachar district fractured his leg when a security barricade fell on him while a woman protester suffered from a broken finger during the lathi charge.

Both the injured agitators have been admitted at the Karimganj Civil Hospital.

According to a report in Hindustan Times, advocate Santanu Naik said, "A youth broke his leg while the lady broke her fingers during the lathi charge. They were sent to Silchar Medical College and Hospital (SMCH). The other injured persons received treatment in local hospitals in Sribhumi."

Partha Pratim Das, the Superintendent of Police of Sribhumi said, "Considering the number of protesters, we deployed 300 police personnel in that area and two lines of defence were created by police and the BSF. However, at one point some protesters tried to break the barricades and we had to use force to control the situation."

A senior BSF officer said that they had managed to stop the crowd about 500 metres away from the fencing.

According to the publication's report he said, "We stopped the protesters near Sutarkandi, which is a land border, but some people tried to cross the river border too. We managed to stop them, and they returned later."

Naik said that the Sanatani Aikya Mancha had mentioned the insulting of the Indian flag in Bangladesh, which may have triggered the agitators and led to protests.

Sanatani Aikya Mancha held protests across the Barak Valley in Assam and wrote letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, United Nations, the Bangladesh High Commission in Guwahati and also to the Governor of Assam.

According to a report by The Times of India, a member of the Mancha said, "We urge our govt to exert pressure on Bangladesh, which we granted independence only 50 years ago. If they have forgotten it or its younger generation, the Centre should remind them by adopting drastic measures."

He also said that Das has been falsely charged, imprisoned in Bangladesh.

According to HT, Naik said, "The way students in Bangladesh are insulting the Indian flag and sharing disturbing pictures on social media, it may trigger bigger protests in our country. Insulting a country's flag is an international issue and UN should intervene immediately,"

He also added, "Only issuing some statements will not help, our government needs to take better steps. We also wrote a letter to Md Yunus and asked him not to forget that Indian soldiers gave lives for the independence of Bangladesh."

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has said that the central government is using its diplomatic channels to ensure safety of Hindus in Bangladesh as they have been facing atrocities in the neighbouring country.

Sarma said, "The events happening in Bangladesh are sad. The government of India has already reacted. It is the responsibility of the government of Bangladesh to ensure safety of the religious minority Hindus there. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been using various diplomatic channels to ensure that the Bangladesh government provides security to the Hindus."

The Bharatheeya Vichara Kendram, an RSS affiliated organisation said that the Bangladesh government has also arrested and imprisoned two more monks from the ISKCON under false charges.

The organisation urged the Union Government and international human rights protection agencies including the UN to ensure the release of the Hindu monks.

(With PTI inputs)