Bangladesh Court Grants Bail to Former ISKCON Leader Chinmoy Krishna Das in Sedition Case:

Suspense crime, Digital Desk : On Wednesday, a court in Bangladesh granted bail to Chinmoy Krishna Das, a notable Hindu religious figure and former ISKON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness) Public Relations Officer, in a case of sedition. This was also reported by The Daily Star.

He was picked up by law enforcement officers at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka concerning a case of sedition which was lodged against him at Chattogram on 25 November, 2024.

Bail Application Cited Health Issues

On the 23rd of April, Das’ lawyer Apurba Kumar Bhattacharjee moved to the High Court on the grounds that his client be freed on bail due to being incarcerated without trial alongside other health complications.

Minority Issues and Escalating Violence in Bangladesh

Chinmoy Krishna Das, also known as Krishna Das Prabhu or Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari, has been serving as the General Secretary of Bangladesh Sammilito Sanatan Jagaran Jote, an association fighting for Hindus in Bangladesh. He has been persistently vocal in demanding legal action from the state towards the Hindu minorities, who are estimated to be about 8 percent of the total population of 170 million.

Post 5th August, when Sheikh Hasina’s Aanami League government fell, there have been numerous reports of attacks on Hindu torture in over 50 districts.

Prior, Das had called on the provisional government to curb the activities of extremist groups and for restoration of confidence among minorities in the state, suggested the arrest of culprits.

Bangladesh's Voiced Hindu Advocacy

Chinmoy Krishna Das during his stint with ISKON made it a point to focus on the rampant abuse of Bangladeshi Hindus, having them participate in violence and subsequently getting no support from the administration led.

The latest arrest in the context of sedition has raised eyebrows of quite a number of activists of rights and datu because this, in their eyes, seems to be a part of the systematic suppression of differing opinions amid change of government.