Bangladesh playing with FIRE, calls for separate Hindu homeland surface amid rising minority persecution

Can a separate homeland for Hindus be carved out of Bangladesh? This question is being reverberated across the country more loudly amid the persecution of minorities under the Muhammad Yunus-controlled interim government of Bangladesh. With thousands of Hindus being attacked, and hundreds of their homes and temples being destroyed by radical Islamists after they swept to power, this question has gained credibility. 

The interim government has admitted the instances of attacks on Hindus, their homes and temples, though it has denied religious persecution. It has claimed that the attacks were carried out due to political reasons and there was no communal intention. 

Separate homeland for persecuted Hindus?

If reports are to be believed, most of the Hindus living in Chattogram or Chittagong and Rangpur support the idea of carving out a separate homeland as they think they can no longer live with the Muslims. 
Their sentiment was echoed when the Bangladesh Sanmilita Sanatan Jagran Jote held a massive rally in Chittagong on October 25, demanding constitutional safeguards and reservation in jobs for minorities. 

The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council has backed the demand. Bangladeshi Hindus, who number about 1.3 crore, have been joined by other religious minorities like the Buddhists, with a population of 10 lakh and Christians who number about five lakh.

Demand for Hindu homeland dates back to 1949

The demand for a homeland for Bangladeshi Hindus is not new. Way back in 1949, Pulin Biswas, lovingly called "Pulin Babu" raked up the issue and demanded that a separate homeland for Hindus be carved out of Bangladesh. He along with lakhs of Hindus were forced to leave the country amid persecution and take shelter in India. 

Talking exclusively to DNA, Palash Biswas, noted journalist and son of the undisputed leader of Bangladeshi refugees said, "Pulin Babu wanted unification of both sides of Bengal so that the Bengali Hindus are not uprooted from their own homes."  He added, "Pulin Biswas believed that everyone has the right to live in his own environment so that he remains attached to his language, culture, tradition, his roots. No one should be uprooted." Months after a new country Bangladesh was born, Pulin Babu went back to Dhaka to raise the demand, only to be arrested by the government.

However, his dream of a separate Hindu homeland is being echoed more loudly now, particularly after the radical Islamists captured power and launched a fresh wave of minority persecution. 

Rangpur, Chittagong for Hindu state?

If reports are to be believed, many people in the country believe that two provinces of Bangladesh—the northern Rangpur division and a large part of its southeastern Chittagong division— may be the ideal homeland for the persecuted Hindus and other religious minorities of the country. 

The Bangladeshi district of Rangpur is close to Uttar and Dakshin Dinajpur districts to its west, the Siliguri sub-division of the Darjeeling district to its northwest, the Jalpaiguri and Coochbehar districts to its north, and Assam’s Dhubri and South Salmara districts. It is also near Meghalaya’s West and Southwest Garo Hills to its east. The Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) has three districts-—Khagrachhari, Rangamati, and Bandarban—bordering Tripura and Mizoram. 

Muhammad Yunus triggers row

It may also resolve the problem of the seven states of the Northeast. Known as "seven sisters", the area is landlocked, and only a 22-kilometer-wide strip known as Chicken's Neck or the Siliguri Corridor connects them to the rest of India. Muhammad Yunus triggered a controversy during his China visit when he said that "Bangladesh is the only guardian of the sea in the region because the seven states are a landlocked country".

The geostrategic experts believe that if the two regions are united to make a separate homeland for Hindus and other minorities, it will solve the problem of ethnic cleansing in Bangladesh. Besides, it will also resolve the issue of the seven states that will have Chittagong as a natural seaport in the Bay of Bengal. 

Will India back demand for Hindu homeland?

Muhammad Yunus reportedly raised the issue of constructing a Chinese air base in the Rangpur district when he met officials in Beijing. All the stakeholders-—Bangladesh, China, and India—remain tight-lipped over the issue; however, it has ruffled many feathers in India. His reported offer to China has come out days before two high-level delegations from Pakistan are scheduled to visit Dhaka to bolster ties. 

New Delhi is upset over increasing bonhomie between Bangladesh and Pakistan, besides Dhaka's defence and security deals with China. The talk of seven states being landlocked, the offer to build a Chinese air base near the Indian border, and the demand for a separate homeland make a dangerous cocktail. Is Muhammad Yunus instigating India to back the demand for a separate homeland for Hindus?