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Mumbai: On the occasion of Human Rights Day on Monday, Sakal Hindu Samaj and other Hindu and Buddhist groups organized marches in several cities in Maharashtra to protest atrocities against minorities in Bangladesh. Prominent BJP leaders and Hindu priests took part in the marches and urged the interim government in Bangladesh led by Muhammad Yunus to take strict action against the attackers.

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray had recently criticized the Narendra Modi-led government’s stand on alleged atrocities against Hindus and other minorities in Bangladesh. Monday’s marches – dubbed ‘Hindu Nyaya Yatra’ in most places – were aimed at countering criticism and cornering the opposition.

Several thousand people took part in marches in Nandurbar, Partur in Jalna district, Parali and Majalgaon in Beed district, and Purna and Manwath in Parbhani district, wearing saffron hoods and silencers and shouting slogans against attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh.

In Purna, demonstrators burned an effigy of Muhammad Yunus. BJP MLA and former minister Babanrao Lonikar took part in the march at Partur, while former BJP MP Sujay Vikhe Patil took part in the march at Ahilyanagar (formerly Ahmednagar). In Nagpur, the march took place through all the six assembly segments under the Nagpur Lok Sabha constituency.

Ramgiri Maharaj, head of Sadguru Gangagiri Maharaj Sansthan, led the march to Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar. Former minister Atul Save, who took part in the march to the district office, said: “I condemn the attacks on Hindus and Buddhists in Bangladesh. These types of incidents are increasing.”

Ramgiri Maharaj demanded that Hindus from Bangladesh should be given shelter in India. “On November 23, the people of Maharashtra saw what happens when the Sanatani people unite,” he said, referring to the resounding victory of the BJP-led Mahayuti coalition in the Assembly elections. “We can also choose the president of America. Attacks on Hindus will not be tolerated.”

In Mumbai, the Bhartiya Bhikkhu Sangh, comprising Buddhist monks, staged a protest at the Gateway of India.

“All communities contributed to the liberation of Bangladesh (in 1971). The government of Bangladesh must investigate the atrocities against Buddhists, Jains and Hindus and take strict action against the attackers,” said Bhikkhu Viratna Mahathero.