Home Affairs Adviser M Sakhawat Hussain has issued a stern warning against attacks on minorities, saying no one will be spared if they are found guilty of such crimes.
The retired army brigadier general made the remarks while speaking to the media after meeting with a delegation of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) Bangladesh at the secretariat yesterday.
He assured the ISKCON delegation of security, saying that the law-enforcing agencies, including the police, had already started working after the tumultuous fall of the Awami League.
“Maximum efforts have been made to protect minorities,” Sakhawat told reporters.
ISKCON Bangladesh President Satya Ranjan Baroi (Suddhasattva Gobinda Das), General Secretary Charu Chandra Das Brahmachari (Chandi Das Bala), Treasurer Jyotiswar Gaur Das (Jyoti Prakash Roy), Assistant Director of Public Relations Bimal Kumar Ghosh (Bimla Prasad Das), Director of Food for Life Amani Krishna Das, Executive Committee Member Sudarshan Jagannath Das (Sukanta Chakraborty) and ISKCON National Crisis Committee Member Jugadharma Das (Yubaraj Gope), were present in the meeting as the delegation members.
Sakhawat said Bangladesh is a country of communal harmony as he has seen since his childhood.
“I’ve grown up together with people of all religions. There was no discord. We do not want any fights and violence. We believe in peace,” he said.
In the meeting, ISKCON Bangladesh President Satya Ranjan Baroi highlighted the history and activities of ISKCON.
He requested the adviser to prioritise steps for the security of minorities.
Satya Ranjan also placed a list of proposals with eight points, including a law to ensure the security of minority communities, a monitoring cell, a minority commission, and steps to provide round-the-clock state security for the temples.
The home adviser pledged all-out support from his side for the security of the minority groups.