Dhaka, April 30 The Appellate Division of the Bangladesh Supreme Court on Wednesday evening stayed the High Court order given earlier in the day granting bail to Chinmoy Krishna Das, or Chandan Kumar Dhar, the former ISKCON monk and spokesperson of Bangladesh Sammilito Sanatani Jagaran Jote in a sedition case.
Judge of the Appellate Division Justice, Rezaul Haque passed the order after hearing an appeal filed by the state counsel hours after the High Court granted him bail.
The stay order will remain in force until the filing of a leave-to-appeal petition and release of the full text of the verdict.
Earlier, the Bangladesh High Court granted bail to Das, who was arrested on November 25 last year on charges of sedition, linked to alleged disrespect of the national flag during a rally in Chattogram. His arrest had sparked widespread outrage across the world.
Wednesday's bail for Das, a President of Pundarik Dham who has been a voice for those seeking religious freedom and minority protection, had come nearly six months after his arrest. Chinmoy was arrested in Dhaka on November 25 and sent to jail the following day after a Chattogram court rejected his bail plea. On December 11, 2024 the same court again refused bail in the case.
The arrest of Das had sparked massive protests by the Hindu community in Bangladesh, which has been in political turmoil since August 2024 when Sheikh Hasina was removed amidst widespread violent demonstrations.
In the following nine months, Bangladesh has witnessed rising cases of attacks on Hindu community ever since the Hasina-led government was toppled and an interim administration was formed under the leadership of Muhammad Yunus.
India has taken a tough line on the rights of Hindu minority and repeatedly stated that there is "systematic persecution of Hindu minorities" under the Yunus-led interim government.
Recently, Bhabesh Chandra Roy, a prominent leader of Hindu community associated with the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Committee, was abducted from home and beaten to death by four individuals on April 18.
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