by Sanjay Saxena
In Bangladesh, Hindus, Buddhists, and other minority communities are being burned and killed. Their properties are being looted, and mothers and sisters are being dishonored. The situation is so horrific that it would make anyone shudder. What is happening in Bangladesh is far worse compared to what happened in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh. Even the recent violence in Bahraich appears minor in comparison to the atrocities being inflicted on Hindus in Bangladesh. This is because the incidents in Sambhal and Bahraich are being exaggerated by the opposition to create an uproar. While the Gandhi family and Akhilesh Yadav are making a big issue out of Sambhal and Bahraich, they remain utterly silent about the bloodshed and atrocities against Hindus and Dalits in Bangladesh.
In Akhilesh’s PDA (Backward-Dalit-Minority alliance), discussions may occur about the backward and Dalit communities, but the reality is that Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav prioritizes the Muslim vote bank over everyone else. His talk of Dalits and backward classes is merely a tactic to mislead these voters. Similarly, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and his team make noise about caste-based census to show concern for Dalits and backward classes, but in truth, they are only interested in the Muslim vote bank.
In fact, both the Samajwadi Party and Congress are caught up in a race to capture the Muslim vote bank. Despite being allies in the INDIA alliance, they are becoming political adversaries. For the sake of Muslim votes, Rahul Gandhi tries to climb on Akhilesh Yadav’s shoulders while stabbing him in the back. Meanwhile, Akhilesh, who has captured the Muslim voter base after Mulayam Singh Yadav, refuses to loosen his grip on these votes. As a result, Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav’s paths are diverging in Uttar Pradesh. Whether it was the recent Lok Sabha elections or the nine assembly by-polls, Akhilesh kept his distance from Congress despite being allies. While Akhilesh left some seats for Congress in the Lok Sabha elections, he didn’t leave a single seat for them in the by-polls.
When Rahul Gandhi planned a visit to Sambhal after the violence, SP General Secretary and Akhilesh’s uncle, Ramgopal Yadav, dismissed it as a publicity stunt. This led to heated exchanges between leaders of both parties. However, Ramgopal’s remark turned out to be accurate. When Rahul Gandhi and his sister Priyanka Vadra had an opportunity to raise the issue of Sambhal violence in Parliament, they, along with the entire Congress, instead focused on the Adani controversy and did not utter a single word about Sambhal.
The silence of Congress and SP leaders on the bloodshed of Hindus, particularly Dalits, in Bangladesh did not sit well with BJP or BSP chief Mayawati. Yogi Adityanath expressed deep sorrow over the events in Bangladesh. Without naming Rahul or Akhilesh, he stated, “Some people are deceiving society and spreading lies. When the Nizam of Hyderabad and his Razakars were burning Dalit villages, they remained silent. Even back then, Babasaheb Ambedkar had written an open letter urging Dalits to leave the Nizam’s territory but not change their faith. Neighboring countries have seen a drastic decline in the Hindu population. In 1947, Pakistan and Bangladesh had a significant Hindu population. In 1971, Hindus made up 22% of Bangladesh’s population, but today it has dropped to just 6–8%.” Yogi further criticized Congress, saying, “Those who have long exploited Dalits as a vote bank are now silent on the events in Bangladesh. They cannot speak the truth and merely put on a show with the Constitution in hand, having no connection to Babasaheb’s values.”
BSP chief Mayawati also raised similar concerns, questioning why Congress and SP, despite being principal opposition parties, are silent on the atrocities in Bangladesh. She accused them of exploiting the Sambhal violence to appease Muslim voters while ignoring other pressing issues. She demanded that the central government bring Dalits from Bangladesh to India. According to her, SP and Congress are not interested in public welfare but are fixated on gaining Muslim votes. She also alleged that these parties are creating divisions within the Muslim community, warning them to remain cautious.
Many political leaders are maintaining silence on the violence in Bangladesh, and Muslim organizations are also notably quiet. This drew sharp criticism from BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain, who stated, “The atrocities against Hindus in Bangladesh have crossed all limits, and the Indian government is monitoring the situation. However, Muslim organizations in India remain silent on the burning of religious places and attacks on religious leaders in Bangladesh. When Muslims face issues in places like Palestine or Iran, these organizations protest. But they remain mute when Hindus are being persecuted in Bangladesh. The entire Muslim community should march against these atrocities, but that is not happening.” Hussain added that India is a model country for the treatment of minorities and emphasized that no nation is better than India in this regard. He urged Muslim organizations to speak out against the injustice faced by minorities in Bangladesh.
