DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) – Muslims and student activists gathered in the capital of Bangladesh on Friday to celebrate the upcoming visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take part in the celebration of the country’s 50th anniversary of independence.
Modi is due to arrive in Dhaka on March 26, which celebrates Bangladesh as its Independence Day. That was the date in 1971 when Bangladesh declared independence from Pakistan. With the help of India, Bangladesh emerged as a new nation after nine months of bloody war.
Following Friday prayers, about 500 Muslims took to the streets outside the main Baitul Mokarram mosque in the center of Dhaka amid strict security.
The protesters wore no banners and did not declare whether they had any political parties. They took their shoes in their hands to show contempt for Modi. They sang slogans against India and against Modi and asked that he not come to Dhaka.
Separately, about 200 left-wing student activists marched through streets on the Dhaka University campus where they named Modi as ‘the butcher of Gujarat’.
Some protesters carried placards with ‘Go Back Modi, Go Back India’ and ‘Go Back Killer Modi’.
Modi was prime minister in the western state of Gujarat in 2002 when Hindu-Muslim riots killed more than 1,000 people. Allegations that authorities allowed and even encouraged the bloodshed have long followed Modi, who repeatedly denies playing any role. The Supreme Court of India has said there is no evidence to prosecute him.
The protesters criticized Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for inviting Modi, saying the two countries had many disputed issues. The protesters said Modi and his Hindu nationalist party oppressed Muslims in India. They also criticized the killings of Bangladeshis by Indian border guards. India says such victims occur when Bangladeshis engage in cross-border smuggling and illegally attempt to cross the border.
“India’s subordinate government of Hasina has invited Modi, we are here to protest,” Hossain Mohammed Anwar said in front of the mosque.
Modi’s visit is the first foreign trip since the coronavirus pandemic began. He is scheduled to travel to a place outside Dhaka that is sacred to the Matua community in the West Bengal state of India.
Matua is a Hindu religious sect that is expected to determine the winner of at least seven constituencies in the Indian state’s elections next month.