Bangladesh\u2019s leading political parties have called for calm following widespread unrest in the country triggered by the killing of a lawyer during clashes between Hindu protesters and security forces. Public prosecutor Saiful Islam Alif died on Tuesday as angry supporters of outspoken Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari \u2014 arrested for allegedly disrespecting the Bangladeshi flag during a rally \u2014 battled with police when he was denied bail. Religious relations have been turbulent in the Muslim-majority nation of 170 million people since a student-led revolution in August toppled autocratic ex-premier minister Sheikh Hasina, who then fled to India. The Bangladeshi National Party (BNP) and Jamaat-i-Islami \u2014 Hasina\u2019s two main opponents during her 15-year tenure \u2014 have urged restraint. BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir was quoted today by the daily Prathom Alo as having said that a \u201cdefeated fascist group\u201d was behind the latest flare-up, a reference to Hasina\u2019s Awami League. \u201cThis incident is completely unwarranted,\u201d he told the newspaper. \u201cWe strongly condemn it and urge everyone to approach the situation calmly.\u201d Shafiqur Rahman of Jamaat blamed the ongoing unrest on a \u201cvested group plotting to destabilise the country\u201d. Street protests have nonetheless been called to demand a ban on the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), a transnational Hindu religious group also known as the Hare Krishna movement that Das reportedly belonged to. Hefazat-i-Islam, a collective of Islamic seminaries, held a rally today to demand the group\u2019s prohibition, alleging it was a front to return Hasina to power on behalf of India, her ousted government\u2019s biggest benefactor. \u201cThere is a meticulously designed plan to instigate communal riots in Bangladesh and ISKCON is here to implement it on behalf of India and Sheikh Hasina,\u201d Mamunul Haque of Hefazat-i-Islam told supporters during the rally. Hasina demanded Das\u2019s \u201cimmediate release\u201d from custody earlier this week and called his arrest \u201cillegal\u201d, BBC reported. The ex-premier also condemned the killing of the lawyer, calling it a \u201cblatant violation of human rights\u201d. India has described Das\u2019s arrest and denial of bail as \u201cunfortunate\u201d. But ISKCON denies any connections to Das. \u201cWe expelled Chinmoy long before the case was filed against him for breaching ISKCON\u2019s discipline,\u201d the group\u2019s Bangladesh president Satya Ranjan Barai told AFP on Friday. \u201cHe was relieved of his duties, but he defied the order and continued his activities.\u201d Bangladesh\u2019s top court on Thursday dismissed a petition calling for a ban on ISKCON. \u201cMuslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Christians \u2026 believe in coexistence, and this harmony will not be broken,\u201d the court ruled.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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