By Deutsche Welle (Asia) | Created at 2025-01-02 16:41:54 | Updated at 2025-01-05 01:30:26
2 days ago
A Bangladeshi court on Thursday rejected another bail application by a jailed Hindu monk who led protests for better security for Hindus in the Muslim-majority country.
Krishna Das Prabhu was detained after leading large rallies in the southeastern city of Chattogram.
He was arrested in November for allegedly insulting the Bangladeshi flag during a rally, and now faces sedition charges.
Another bail plea denied
The court rejected a previous bail request made when Prabhu didn't have legal representation.
After the most recent denial, Prabhu's lawyer Apurba Kumar Bhattacharjee said they would appeal the decision.
Meanwhile, public prosecutor said his office believed the monk could "misuse his bail" if released from custody.
"We argued in the court that if he gets bail it could create anarchy as we saw in the past that he triggered violence on the court premises by calling thousands of his supporters to protest," Public Prosecutor Mofizul Haque Bhuiyan told the AP news agency by phone.
Prabhu didn't appear at the court. Violence broke out after a previous bail hearing, with his followers accused of killing a public prosecutor during the clash.
Bangladeshis on border with India live a dangerous life
India-Bangladesh ties turn sour
Religious tensions in Muslim-majority Bangladesh have been high since student-led protests ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in August 2024.
New Delhi's Hindu nationalist government was a staunch ally of Hasina, and the veteran leader has been hiding in India since fleeing Bangladesh.
Her departure has left a power vacuum that the new temporary government is struggling to fill. Hindu groups allege there have been thousands of attacks against Hindus after Hasina's government was overthrown.
Bangladesh's interim government led by Muhammad Yunus has downplayed those claims, calling reports of the attacks exaggerated.
ess/dj (AP, AFP)
