India advises dependents of diplomats in Bangladesh to return home amid growing security concerns

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In light of the security situation, India has advised dependents of Mission & Post officials in Bangladesh to return home as a precautionary step. The Indian Mission and all Posts continue to remain open and fully operational, news agency ANI quoted sources as saying.

However, the move will not affect the strength of diplomatic staff or disrupt the functioning of the Indian High Commission and the Assistant High Commissions in Bangladesh.

A series of killings targeting members of minority communities has sparked widespread concern across the country and abroad. On January 16, Ripon Saha, who worked at a fuel station in Rajbari, was run over by an SUV after he challenged a customer who allegedly refused to pay. On the same day, unidentified assailants torched the house of Birendra Kumar Dey, a Hindu schoolteacher, in Sylhet. On January 13, the body of Samir Das was discovered in an agricultural field in Feni. Earlier in the month, Sarat Mani Chakraborty, Rana Pratap, and a Hindu businessman in Gazipur were killed in separate incidents of violence.

December witnessed similarly disturbing episodes. Dipu Chandra Das, a factory worker, was lynched following a false allegation of blasphemy, with his body reportedly hung from a tree and set on fire. Violence that erupted after the death of a student leader also led to attacks on media organisations, including Prothom Alo and The Daily Star, as well as assaults on Hindu homes and cultural institutions.