Bangladesh government is now looking to ban ISKCON and is investigating it as a ‘religious fundamentalist organisation’. Meanwhile, the global ISKCON organisation has expressed its support for Chinmoy Krishna Das.
However, this is not the first time ISKCON has been attacked. (Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
New Delhi: Bangladesh is witnessing raging controversy and protests since the arrest of the Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das. On November 25, Chinmoy Krishna Das was arrested at Dhaka airport. He was presented before a court in Chittagong on the next day but the judge denied his bail plea and ordered him to be sent to custody. To add fuel to the fire, the Bangladesh government is now looking to ban ISKCON and is investigating it as a ‘religious fundamentalist organisation’.
Meanwhile, the global ISKCON organisation has expressed its support for Chinmoy Krishna Das. It issued a statement on November 29 where it emphasised that even though Chinmoy Krishna Das is not an official member, it did not wish to distance itself from him. The organisation supported his right to peacefully advocate for the protection of Hindus and their places of worship, and his freedom of expression. However, this is not the first time ISKCON has been attacked and in this article, we will take a look at some of the violent actions perpetrated against the organisation.
A Timeline of Violent Attacks Against ISKCON Temples
On January 21, 1974, two firebombs were thrown into Tennessee’s Hare Krishna temple and killed a 22-year-old member of the ISKCON named Allen Bruce North. In August 2006, Imphal’s ISKCON temple was struck by a bomb blast when it was filled with worshipers. It killed five devotees and injured 50 including the chief priest.
2007: Kazakhstan
In 2007, the government of Kazakhstan demolished 25 homes of members of ISKCON in Almaty’s Sri Vrindavan Dham commune. They were destroyed on the pretext of being illegal constructions. In reply, ISKCON said it was done out of religious persecution.
2015 and 2016: Attacks in Bangladesh
In 2015, terrorists of the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh attacked the ISKCON Temple in Bangladesh’s Dinajpur. The terrorists threw hand bombs and fired on those present in the temple. The attack injured two people. In 2016, the ISKCON Sylhet was attacked and it injured a minimum of 10 people.
Further attacks in Bangladesh
- In 2018, ISKCON Dhaka organised a Rath Yatra in which an unknown group of people attacked and injured six devotees.
- On October 15, 2021, on the occasion of Navami, a Muslim mob attacked an ISKCON temple which was located in Noakhali. Two ISKCON devotees were killed in the attack.
- In early August 2024, violence targeted Hindu minorities in the country and burned down Meherpur’s ISKCON temple and a Kali temple in Noakhali which was 200 years old.
- On November 5, 2024, a procession from Teri Bazar to Cheragi in Chattogram allegedly incited communal tensions with incendiary slogans against ISKCON. It was the result of a controversial Facebook post by a person named Osman Ali who was a member of the Jamat-e-Islami and allegedly called ISKCON a “terrorist group.” The post sparked outrage and led to the communal clashes.
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