“Sheikh Hasina destroyed…,” says historian Irfan Habib, condemning religious violence in Bangladesh.

News Mania Desk / Piyal Chatterjee / 4th December 2024

Historian Irfan Habib has condemned the ongoing violence against minority communities in Bangladesh, blaming former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of “destroying the unity and integrity” of the country.

“Whatever is happening in Bangladesh and this is my stated position on religious violence anywhere like what is happening in Bangladesh is to be condemned. Violence and hatred in the name of religion, in the name of ideology, political ideology, or extremism of another form need to be condemned. This is what I have been seeing all this whether when it happens in our country and neighbouring country I have spoken against violence against minorities in Pakistan as well,” Habib told ANI on Sunday.

“So I stand for a position where hatred, and violence in the name of religion anywhere even in our country or in other countries. Should not be justified, should be condemned outright there is no if and but in that,” he said.

He further stated that Bangladesh, which was founded on the principles of culture, civilization, and language, has strayed from those “values.”

“Hasina Sheikh destroyed the unity and integrity of our own country of the people of her own country. Which is sad. People are indulging in violence in the name of religion, so for me, the history of Bangladesh is not what has happened now. The country was divided in the name of religion in 1947 and Pakistan was formed. Bangladesh was created because there were issues regarding language culture and all sorts of political issues with West Pakistan. Religion was the same, but there were differences on so many other counts and a new nation was created. Now that new nation which was created in the name of culture, civilization and language, did not go along those values, unfortunately,” he added.

Habib blamed former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for the ongoing violence in the country, stating that her governance was “not good.” He emphasized, “If anyone views the violence through a religious lens, it is deeply unfortunate. I hold Sheikh Hasina accountable for this because her leadership led to this situation. Poor governance gave these individuals the opportunity to act. This is truly a matter of great sadness.”

Since the imprisonment of former priest Chinmoy Krishna Das, Bangladesh has seen an increase in violence against minority populations, including temple demolition. A student-led revolution had earlier deposed Sheikh Hasina following weeks of protests and rioting that claimed over 600 lives. Hasina, 76, fled to India on August 5, and an interim administration led by Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus was formed.