India slams Bangladesh after Hindu leader Bhabesh Chandra Roy's killing: ‘Protecting all minorities’

India on Saturday lashed out at Bangladesh over the alleged abduction and subsequent killing of minority Hindu leader Bhabesh Chandra Roy. In a statement on X, India said that the Bangladesh government must “live up to its responsibility of protecting all minorities”.

Taking to microblogging platform X, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the “brutal killing” of Bhabesh Chandra Roy follows a “pattern of systematic persecution” of Hindu minorities in Bangladesh.

“We have noted with distress the abduction and brutal killing of Shri Bhabesh Chandra Roy, a Hindu minority leader in Bangladesh,” Jaiswal wrote.

“This killing follows a pattern of systematic persecution of Hindu minorities under the interim government even as the perpetrators of previous such events roam with impunity,” he added.

Condemning the incident further, Jaiswal called on the interim government in Dhaka to ensure protection for all minorities, including Hindus.

“We condemn this incident and once again remind the interim government to live up to its responsibility of protecting all minorities, including Hindus, without inventing excuses or making distinctions,” he said.

Who was Bhabesh Chandra Roy?

Bhabesh Chandra Roy was a prominent leader of the Hindu community in Bangladesh. He was allegedly abducted from his home and beaten to death in Dinajpur district in north Bangladesh, as per a media report on Friday.

A resident of Basudebpur village of Dinajpur, about 330 kilometres northwest of Dhaka, 58-year-old Bhabesh Chandra Roy was the vice-president of the Biral unit of the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad.

His body was recovered on Thursday night, The Daily Star reported quoting his wife and the police. Roy's wife Shantana told the media outlet that he received a phone call around 4:30 pm and claimed the call was made by the perpetrators to confirm his presence at home.

“Approximately 30 minutes later, four men arrived on two motorcycles and allegedly abducted Bhabesh from the premises,” the report said, adding Roy was taken to Narabari village, where he was brutally assaulted.

Bhabesh Chandra Roy, a prominent leader of the Hindu community of the area, was found lying unconscious he was sent back home and family members rushed him to a hospital in Dinajpur. He was declared dead upon arrival.

Roy was the vice-president of the Biral unit of the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad.