Chinmoy Das Bangladesh release
The appeal comes on the occasion of Janmashtami, the birth anniversary of Lord Krishna.

Guwahati: The Rights and Risks Analysis Group (RRAG) has appealed to the United Nations and the diplomatic community to press the Bangladesh government for the immediate release of Hindu priest Chinmoy Das, who remains in custody since November 2024.

The appeal comes on the occasion of Janmashtami, the birth anniversary of Lord Krishna.

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The call for intervention was made even as Bangladesh’s top military officials — Army Chief General Waqar Uz Zaman, Navy Chief Admiral Mohd Nazmul Hussain, and Air Force Chief Hasan Mahmud Khan — attended Janmashtami celebrations in Dhaka on Friday.

RRAG Director Suhas Chakma dismissed the gesture as “a sham and a desperate attempt to beguile the international community,” citing continued atrocities against Hindus in the country. He claimed that 2,485 incidents of violence against religious and ethnic minorities have been recorded during the one-year tenure of Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus.

Chinmoy Das was first arrested on November 25, 2024, on charges of sedition after he allegedly placed the flag of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) above Bangladesh’s national flag. Later, while already in police custody, he was implicated in the murder of a lawyer inside a court complex — a charge RRAG says is fabricated.

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“If there was any conspiracy, it was carried out under the watch of Bangladeshi security forces who had custody of him at the time. None of those officials has been held accountable,” Chakma said.

He further alleged that the prosecution’s continued opposition to Das’s bail is aimed at sending “a clear message to Hindus in Bangladesh — not to engage in political activity, but to confine themselves to religious programmes such as Janmashtami.”

RRAG reiterated its demand that the interim government of Bangladesh release Chinmoy Das on bail, particularly on Janmashtami, as a symbolic gesture of goodwill.