49 minority teachers forced to resign

Shillong, Sept 1: In the weeks following Sheikh Hasina’s resignation as Bangladesh’s prime minister, at least 49 teachers from minority communities were forced to resign, local media reported.

The Bangladesh Chhatra Oikya Parishad, the student wing of the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Oikya Parishad, announced the information at a press conference at the Jatiya Press Club on Saturday, The Daily Star reported.

Sajib Sarkar, the organization’s coordinator, said religious and ethnic minorities have faced a wave of violence since the fall of the Hasina-led government.

He said there were attacks, looting, attacks on women, vandalism of temples, arson of homes and businesses and even killings.

Sarkar further revealed that teachers from minority communities across the country have faced physical attacks, leading to the forced resignation of at least 49 teachers by August 30. However, 19 of those teachers have since been reinstated, he added.

Sheikh Hasina’s government was forced to resign last month after violent student-led protests against the quota left more than 400 people dead.

Last month, while Muhammad Yunus, the chief adviser to Bangladesh’s interim government, said after taking oath that he would “uphold, support and protect the constitution and discharge his duties sincerely”, a massive outbreak of violence erupted in the country after Hasina left Dhaka with gangsters causing widespread unrest and targeting Hindus, their homes and places of worship.

According to the Bangladesh Jatiya Hindu Mohajot (BJHM), a large national association of 23 religious organisations in the country, Hindu families have faced violence and vandalism in as many as 278 locations in 48 districts of the country since August 5.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also reiterated India’s support for Bangladesh’s stability and development. He said, “In the days to come, we will always wish the best for Bangladesh’s ‘Vikas Yatra’ (journey of development) as we are the benefactors of humanity.” (IANS)