Modi’s visit sparks protests in Dhaka

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Bangladesh to attend its Golden Jubilee celebrations of independence and the birth centenary of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the country’s founder and father of current Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, sparked violent protests at Dhaka’s main mosque that were dispersed by police using tear gas and rubber bullets – injuring scores of people – after clashes broke out between groups of demonstrators, officials and witnesses said on Friday.

Hundreds of protesters had gathered outside Dhaka’s Baitul Mokarram mosque after the Friday prayers. Witnesses said violent clashes broke out after one faction of protesters began waving their shoes as a sign of disrespect to Modi, and another group tried to stop them.

Local media said the protesters who tried to stop the shoe-waving are aligned with the governing Awami League party, which criticised the other protest faction for attempting to create chaos during Modi’s visit.

Local TV showed protesters throwing stones at the police, who were heavily present on the streets near the mosque. Somoy TV reported that at least 40 people were injured, including journalists, and were taken to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital for treatment.

Modi’s two-day tour – his first abroad since the coronavirus pandemic began last year – will cap Dhaka’s 10-day celebrations already attended by leaders from Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan and the Maldives.

Prime Minister Hasina, a key partner for India in maintaining regional stability, welcomed Mr. Modi at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka on Friday morning.

Friday’s was the latest in a series of protests held across Bangladesh to oppose the visit by Mr. Modi, who many Bangladeshis accuse of stoking religious tensions and persecuting Muslims in India.

On Thursday, police in Dhaka fired rubber bullets and tear gas at hundreds of mainly student demonstrators protesting against the Hindu nationalist leader’s visit and criticising the government for inviting him.

Sheikh Mujib fought for a secular nation whereas Mr. Modi is inherently communal.

Police said the protest got out of hand as nearly 2,000 demonstrators marched in Dhaka, with many throwing rocks and stones at officers. Dozens were wounded, with at least 18 sent to hospitals in the city.

“We fired tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse them… We have also arrested 33 people for violence,” police official Syed Nurul Islam told a news agency on Thursday.

At another protest outside Baitul Mokarram mosque last Friday, protesters said more than 1,000 people, most of them Muslims, were killed in the Indian state of Gujarat in 2002, when Modi was the chief minister