London [UK], July 11 : UK Member of Parliament Bob Blackman has raised serious concerns over the rising threats faced by Hindu, Christian, Buddhist and Ahmadiyya minorities in Bangladesh, urging the British government to take diplomatic steps to ensure their protection and support democratic processes in the country.
"I raised my concerns about the rising threats to Hindu, Christian, Buddhist & Ahmadiyya minorities in Bangladesh. Peaceful Rath Yatra celebrations were recently attacked. The Government must press Bangladesh to protect minorities and uphold democracy," Blackman posted on X.
Addressing the UK Parliament, Blackman recalled his earlier interventions on the issue and a recent seminar he hosted to hear directly from affected communities.
"Now, Mr. Speaker, earlier this year, I raised the plight of minority groups in Bangladesh, and yesterday I hosted a seminar where we heard from representatives of the Hindu, Christian, Buddhist & Ahmadiyya who are all under direct attack in Bangladesh," he said.
Referring to a specific incident, the MP highlighted violence during a religious procession. "A couple of weeks ago, I referred to the Rath Yatra celebrations in Harrow and Bangladesh. Islamist thugs attacked them and absolutely disgracefully destroyed that wonderful procession," he stated.
Blackman also criticised Bangladesh's interim administration for failing to provide clarity on the upcoming general elections. "Equally, the current interim government in Bangladesh has failed to announce the dates of the general election when a proper democratic government will be elected in Bangladesh," he said.
Urging the UK government to respond, Blackman called for a formal statement from the Foreign Office. "So could the Leader arrange for a statement to be made next week by the Foreign Office ministers on what we are going to do to put pressure on Bangladesh to make sure we safeguard minorities," he added.
His remarks come at a time when Bangladesh is preparing for its next general elections. Bangladesh's Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus on Wednesday ordered officials to complete preparations for the next general elections by December.
The Chief Adviser gave the directives during a meeting with the country's law enforcement agencies. Senior officials from Bangladesh's Ministry of Home Affairs and heads of various law enforcement agencies were present at the meeting.
"Chief Adviser has directed to complete all preparations for the elections by December", Azad Majumdar, Deputy Press Secretary to the Chief Adviser, told ANI after the meeting.
"In the next elections, 800,000 law enforcement officers will be deployed in 47,000 polling stations. Of them, 570,000 will be Ansar members and 141,000 will be police. Police will have body cameras", he added.
"Chief Adviser has ordered a random reshuffle before the election. He has also asked the officials who served in the last three controversial elections to do a little duty as possible", Majumder said.
Earlier in June, Yunus hinted at holding national elections in early February next year. In June, Muhammad Yunus held talks with Acting Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Chairman Tarique Rahman in London. Rahman proposed to the Chief Adviser to hold the elections before Ramzan next year.
"The Chief Adviser said that he has announced that the elections will be held by the first half of February next year. If all preparations are completed, the elections could be held even in the week before the start of Ramadan in 2026," said a joint statement issued after the talks between Yunus and Rahman.
"In that case, it will be necessary to achieve sufficient progress on reform and justice within that period," it added.
Former Bangladesh PM, Sheikh Hasina, was ousted in a student-led uprising in August last year. After Sheikh Hasina's fall, an interim government was formed under the leadership of Muhammad Yunus, a Nobel Laureate.