Iskcon -Priest Chinmoy Das granted bail 6 months after he was arrested in Bangladesh | Today news

A Bangladesh High Court granted bail on Wednesday to the leader of Iskcon leader Chandan Kumar Dhar, known as Chinmoy Krishna Das, in a sedition case, reports The Daily Star. Chinmoy Das was arrested after a controversy that broke out when a sedition case against him and 18 others in Chittagong was brought on October 30 last year. The charges were linked to the elevator of a saffron flag above the official flag of Bangladesh at the October 25 event at Laldighi Maidan in Chattogram. Chimoy Das was held before a court in Chittagong on Tuesday, where his bail pleader was denied, and he was arrested. The arrest caused widespread outrage, with many people demanding his immediate release. According to the lawyer Prolad Deb Nath, who represents Chinmoy, Chinmoy Das is expected to be exempt from detention under the Supreme Court’s Richtie, unless the Supreme Court appeal division issues a residence in the Supreme Court ruling. Under Muhammad Yunus, Bangladesh went through a tense period with Hindu majority of India on minority issues, which provoked protests and counter-protections. Less than 8 percent of the 170 million people in Bangladesh are Hindu. Much in the interim government is not satisfied that India has sheltered Hasina, and a special tribunal in Bangladesh sought her arrest. An official request to India for her extradition remains unanswered. India, who sheltered 10 million refugees and helped Bangladesh gain independence after a nine -month war against Pakistan in 1971, considered Hasina a trusted friend. Hasina’s father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, was the independence leader of Bangladesh, then the eastern part of Pakistan, the local enemy of India. Who is Chinmoy Das? Chinmoy Krishna Das is a prominent advocate of the rights and safety of religious minorities in Bangladesh, especially the Hindu (Sanatani) community. He serves as spokesman for the Bangladesh Sammilita Sanatani Jagran -Jote. Chinmoy Das has appealed to significant reforms, including the establishment of a minority protection law, the establishment of special tribunals to speed up cases of minority persecution, and the creation of a dedicated Ministry of Minority Affairs. Chinmoy Das, from Satkania Upazila in Chittagong, first became prominent through his religious oratory and earned the nickname ‘Shishu Bokta’ or ‘Child orator’ at an early age. Between 2016 and 2022 he served as the Chittagong division secretary of Iskcon, the Gaudiya Vaishnave Organization, before being expelled in 2024. Since the political upheaval after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina’s government in August 2024, Das has emerged as a leading voice against the emerging violence and discrimination facing Hindus and other little ones in Bangladesh. First published: 30 Apr 2025, 03:15 IST