New Delhi:
Amid attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh, ISKCON Kolkata has advised its colleagues and followers in the neighbouring country to wipe off tilak and hide tulsi beads, cover their heads, and avoid wearing saffron. According to a report with The Times Of India, the advice came from ISKCON Kolkata spokesperson Radharamn Das.
“I have been advising all monks and members that in this hour of crisis, they must be very careful to protect themselves and avoid conflict. I have suggested they avoid wearing saffron clothes and vermilion on their foreheads,” the report quoted a statement by Radharamn Das.
“If they feel the need to wear saffron strings, they should wear them in a manner that remains hidden inside clothes and not visible around necks. If possible, they should also cover their heads. In short, they should take every possible measure that doesn’t stand out as monks,” it added.
The advice came hours after Radharamn Das claimed that advocate Ramen Roy, who had defended Bangladesh’s Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Prabhu in a legal case there, was brutally attacked in the neighbouring country and is fighting for his life in a hospital.
According to Das, Roy’s only “fault” was defending Prabhu in court, and a group of Islamists ransacked his home.
The attack left Roy critically injured, and he is currently in the ICU, fighting for his life, the ISKCON Kolkata spokesperson claimed.
Later, speaking to a Bengali news channel, Das, also ISKCON Kolkata vice president, said, “This brutal attack on advocate Roy is a direct consequence of his legal defence of Chinmoy Krishna Prabhu. It reflects the growing danger faced by those who defend the rights of religious minorities in Bangladesh.”
More incidents of attacks on Hindus have been reported in Bangladesh after the arrest of Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das on sedition charges on November 25.
His bail was later denied by a Bangladeshi court, triggering protests by Hindus in various locations, including the capital Dhaka and the port city of Chattogram.
