Hundreds of people of Indian origin and Bangladeshi-origin Hindus braved cold, heavy rain to protest outside the Houses of Parliament in London on Wednesday, urging UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer to take stronger action to condemn what they described as the genocide of Hindus in Bangladesh.
Labour MP for Basingstoke, Luke Murphy, attended the demonstration, saying he had been contacted by numerous constituents concerned about the persecution and killings of Hindus. He said he had raised the issue with the Foreign Office and in Parliament, adding that the Labour government was engaged on the matter and would continue pressing for the protection of minorities in Bangladesh and elsewhere.
Former Labour MP Virendra Sharma also addressed the protest, calling on the British government and international human rights bodies to intervene urgently. He said the UK should convey its strongest protest to the Bangladesh High Commission in London, warning that the situation was unacceptable. “The British government has not done enough. More can and must be done,” he said.
Alak Chanda, general secretary of the Bangladesh Hindu Association (UK), which organised the protest, said the Hindu population in Bangladesh had fallen from 30–40 per cent in 1947 to around 7 per cent today. He alleged a breakdown of law and order and the erosion of human rights since the interim government came to power, urging Britain to exert pressure on Dhaka.
A digital van displayed images highlighting alleged attacks, while protesters carried placards demanding the revocation of Muhammad Yunus’s Nobel Peace Prize, the unconditional release of monk Chinmoy Prabhu, protection for temples, and justice for Dipu Chandra Das, who was lynched.
Among those present was Anamika Dev, whose father was killed in Bangladesh in 2004. “There is no justice for Hindus,” she said. “My family was threatened. This is a genocide. We want justice and we want Britain to pressure Bangladesh to protect Hindus.”
