Congress leader Shashi Tharoor expressed dismay after a statue commemorating the liberation of Bangladesh was destroyed by “anti-India vandals”. The statue depicted the moment Pakistan surrendered after the 1971 war, and Tharoor shared an image of the broken statue, lamenting its destruction at the 1971 Shaheed Memorial Complex in Mujibnagar.
Taking to his official handle on X, he wrote, “Sad to see images like this of statues at the 1971 Shaheed Memorial Complex, Mujibnagar, destroyed by anti-India vandals.”
“This follows disgraceful attacks on the Indian cultural centre, temples, and Hindu homes in several places, even as reports came in of Muslim civilians protecting other minority homes and places of worship,” he added.
The 1971 war not only liberated Bangladesh from Pakistan’s occupation, but also dealt Pakistan a crushing blow, with the largest military surrender since World War II. A statue commemorating this historic event, depicting the signing of the “Instrument of Surrender” by Pakistan Army Major-General Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi, was destroyed by “anti-India vandals” at the 1971 Shaheed Memorial Complex in Mujibnagar.
Bangladesh’s former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and several high-ranking officials have stepped down amidst a student-led uprising that resulted in the deaths of over 450 people in more than a month of protests. Hasina is now facing serious allegations of murder, forced disappearance, money laundering, and corruption, and will be required to face the law, according to Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, a senior member of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
The student-led uprising in Bangladesh has also targeted the country’s minority Hindu population, with over 205 attacks on Hindu households, temples, and businesses reported across 52 districts. The attacks, which have been ongoing since the fall of the government, have left the community feeling vulnerable and marginalized.
As a result, Shashi Tharoor has urged the new caretaker government, led by Nobel laureate Muhammed Yunus, to take immediate action to restore law and order and protect the rights of minority communities.
“The agenda of some of the agitators is quite clear. It is essential that Muhammed Yunus and his interim government take urgent steps to restore law & order in the interests of all Bangladeshis, of every faith. India stands with the people of Bangladesh at this turbulent time, but such anarchic excess can never be condoned,” he said.