(RNS) — In the last weeks of 2024, several digital billboards paid for by the newly emerged United Hindu Council popped up around California’s Bay Area.
“Hindus, Buddhists, Christians living in fear in Bangladesh … Ask Yunus Why,” read one.
“Hindu monks are being arrested … Ask Yunus Why,” read another.
The tagline, a question directed toward Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, the interim leader of Bangladesh’s government, asks for accountability on what many Hindus worldwide are calling targeted violence and discrimination against Hindus and other religious minorities in the predominantly Muslim nation. Since the ousting and resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in August — a leader whose secular party historically held Hindu support — and the subsequent takeover by Yunus, Hindu advocates say the atrocities have increased with no consequence, including reports of the destruction of homes and houses of worship, looting of businesses and physical assaults by emboldened Bangladeshis.
Chinmoy Krishna Das, a Hindu monk and vocal minority rights advocate formerly of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, was arrested in Bangladesh in November on charges of sedition after allegedly disrespecting the Bangladeshi flag. His arrest has led to protests, violent clashes and international condemnation, reaching a high after Das was denied bail and detained on Jan. 2 of …