Since Sheikh Hasina’s exit from Bangladesh in August 2024, the propaganda news portal The Wire has consistently downplayed the issue of violence against Hindus roiling the neighbouring country. Through a series of reports, op-eds, and interviews, The Wire diminished the severity of the targeted attacks on Hindus and other minorities by framing them as politically motivated rather than religiously driven. Though the publication acknowledged the attacks on minorities, it frequently shifted the focus to so-called misinformation by Indian right-wing groups and broader political narratives. Here is an analysis of 10 reports, interviews, and op-eds published by The Wire since August 2024 that clearly show the intention to downplay the attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh.
On 21st December, The Wire published a report quoting the Bangladeshi government’s official response to the Ministry of External Affairs’ reply in the Lok Sabha. The ministry stated that there were 2,200 incidents of violence against Hindus and other minorities in Bangladesh in 2024. The Bangladeshi press wing, as quoted by The Wire, claimed that there were only 138 incidents of violence between January and November 2024. Ain O Salish Kendra, a human rights organisation from Bangladesh, provided the numbers.
It further claimed that the figures presented by the MEA were close to the numbers published by the Bangladesh Hindu-Buddhist-Christian Oikya Parishad, which recorded 2,010 incidents of violence in just 16 days between 4th August and 20th August. Downplaying the incidents of attacks on Hindus and other minorities, the report quoted the press wing as stating that between 5th August and 8th August, there was no government in the neighbouring country. Indirectly, the press wing attempted to evade responsibility, and The Wire followed it. It is unclear on what basis the Bangladeshi government and The Wire dismissed the stats provided by the Bangladesh Hindu-Buddhist-Christian Oikya Parishad.
In an op-ed authored by Partha S. Ghosh published in The Wire on 12th December, the author conspicuously downplayed the attacks on Hindus and other minorities in Bangladesh. He dismissed concerns about the deteriorating communal situation in the neighbouring country and portrayed former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s accusations of genocide against Hindus as “politically motivated” and “exaggerated” to suit her Indian hosts.
Ghosh acknowledged the stronghold of pro-Islamic forces in Bangladeshi politics but diminished the gravity of the violence. He questioned the authenticity of reports from Bangladesh regarding the attacks on Hindus and other minorities, attributing them to “fake news” or “Hindutva propaganda.” Furthermore, he claimed that the communal situation in Bangladesh is no different from that in India and indirectly shifted the focus from the targeted violence faced by minorities in Bangladesh to criticising the BJP-led central government in India. He wrote, “As such, when the BJP, which has been ruling India for ten long years with its avowedly anti-Muslim politics, tends to shed tears for the minorities in a neighbouring country it sounds rather ironical.” In doing so, he minimised the plight of the victims and sidestepped the responsibility of addressing the issue at its core.
Even in regular reports, The Wire did not miss any opportunity to portray day-to-day life in Bangladesh as “normal” while accusing the BJP of circulating videos of “violence” against minorities in India. In a report published on 10th December on declining trade between Bangladesh and India at Petrapole in West Bengal, The Wire quoted a trader from Bongaon, Tapan Saha, who, according to the portal, claimed that “everyday life in Dhaka seemed normal” to him and that it was puzzling to see videos of unrest shared by the BJP on social media, which were absent from Bangladeshi media.
In another report published on 5th December, The Wire effectively downplayed the violence against Hindus in Bangladesh by amplifying the narrative of interim chief adviser Muhammad Yunus and other Bangladeshi officials. The report highlighted allegations made by Yunus, claiming that reports of attacks on minorities were “exaggerated” and part of a “fabricated narrative” spread by India and other global powers.
It further cited Yunus’s claims that Durga Puja was celebrated “peacefully” despite anticipated troubles, portraying Indian concerns as unfounded. The Wire subtly diverted attention from the plight of minorities to Bangladesh’s grievances over incidents such as the Agartala protest. Notably, the protest and the alleged attack on the Bangladeshi consulate in Agartala had already been condemned by the Indian government.
Interestingly, on 3rd December, The Wire published a report citing Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman, who claimed that “anti-Bangladesh sentiment” has been fuelled in India. Citing a post on X by Rahman, The Wire quoted him saying, “Since the fall of autocrat Sheikh Hasina, there is an increase of inflammatory media commentary and political rhetoric against Bangladesh coming from certain Indian quarters. There is now an echo chamber filled with misinformation, fuelling persistent anti-Bangladesh sentiment.”
Notably, Rahman, currently living in the United Kingdom under forced exile, is the prime convict and mastermind of the 21st August 2004 terrorist grenade attack on the Awami League’s political rally. Having fled to London in 2008, he was sentenced to life imprisonment for the grenade attack in 2018. However, on 1st December, the Bangladesh Supreme Court quashed all lower courts’ decisions against him in the 2004 attack.
Ironically, while Rahman alleged the existence of anti-Bangladesh sentiment in India, he called for a boycott of Indian products. In early 2024, he orchestrated a campaign against India, primarily on social media platforms, using the hashtag #IndiaOut.
On 29th November, in an interview with Karan Thapar for The Wire, Zafar Sobhan, editor of the Dhaka Tribune, downplayed the severity of attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh by asserting that the situation has “far improved” compared to previous months.
During the discussion on the arrest of ISKCON leader Chinmoy Krishna Das, Sobhan criticised the sedition charges as “out of line, unwarranted and unwise” but simultaneously shifted focus to blaming Indian politicians and media for allegedly exaggerating the treatment of Hindus in Bangladesh.
He cited Bangladesh’s transition following the ouster of Sheikh Hasina and echoed interim chief adviser Muhammad Yunus’s dismissal of reports on Hindu persecution as “propaganda,” subtly minimising the targeted violence against minorities. The Wire’s report on the interview noted him saying, “Our neighbour, our friend, our ally needs to understand that Bangladesh is a country in transition, and after the overthrow of the Sheikh Hasina ‘autocracy’, there will be a period of uncertainty and instability, but, importantly, it’s being brought under control.”
In an alleged fact-checking report published by Prothom Alo and featured on The Wire on 19th August, the attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh were effectively downplayed by citing a study from Rumor Scanner. The report accused Indian media outlets and individuals of spreading communal misinformation. The report scrutinised social media posts that allegedly misrepresented incidents in Bangladesh as attacks on Hindus, yet it failed to adequately address several incidents of violence or the plight of the Hindu victims.
By focusing heavily on debunking misinformation from Indian sources, the report shifted attention away from the real concerns of targeted violence against Hindus in Bangladesh. The report even accused OpIndia of spreading misinformation while downplaying the extensive reporting done by the portal highlighting attacks on Hindus following Sheikh Hasina’s exit.
In a report published by The Wire on 18th August, which mentioned Bangladesh’s claims that reports of attacks on its Hindu minorities were “exaggerated,” the historical data presents a contrasting reality. While The Wire cited a so-called fact-checker to contest Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s remarks on the declining Hindu population in Bangladesh, official Bangladeshi data shows a significant decline in the minority population.
The “Percentage Distribution of Population by Religious Communities” indicates a drop from 33% in 1901 to 10.5% in 1991, with the 2022 census confirming a further reduction to just 7.95%. HM Shah, while distributing citizenship certificates to Hindu refugees in Gujarat under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), highlighted the persecution of Hindus in Bangladesh, attributing the decline to forced conversions and systemic discrimination.
In an op-ed by Manash Firaq Bhattacharjee published in The Wire on 17th August, the attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh are downplayed by framing the violence as political rather than religious. Bhattacharjee echoes interim chief adviser Muhammad Yunus’s rhetoric, suggesting that Hindus asking for special safeguards were “compartmentalising their demands” and detracting from a nationalistic “humanist aspiration.”
While acknowledging the violence, the op-ed misrepresents it as an extension of political retribution linked to the Awami League rather than targeted religious persecution. Furthermore, it accuses Indian right-wing groups of making a mockery of Bangladeshi Hindus’ suffering by allegedly exaggerating their distress to foster animosity against Indian Muslims. The author went ahead and compared the Islamist organisation, Jamaat-e-Islami, which was banned by Bangladesh, with RSS in India. He wrote, “Just as the RSS says there are no minorities in India, the Jamaat’s ‘emir’ says no one is a minority in Bangladesh as everyone is equal before the law.” By prioritising critiques of Indian narratives and advancing a universalist framework, the op-ed categorically downplayed the gravity of the attacks and the specific vulnerabilities faced by Hindus in Bangladesh.
In an op-ed by Ram Puniyani published in The Wire on 15th August, the author severely downplayed the attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh by portraying them as politically motivated rather than religiously targeted. Though he acknowledged that there were attacks on Hindus, the author emphasised narratives of pluralism and democratic progress in Bangladesh.
He claimed that Yunus and student groups were “protecting” Hindu temples. Simultaneously, he criticised the Indian response and accused right-wing groups and media of spreading misinformation, which fuelled Islamophobia in India and perpetuated divisive rhetoric.
His extensive focus on “Indian propaganda” and conflating the violence with broader political unrest diminished the severity of targeted attacks on Hindus. He attempted to shift the narrative towards communalism in India rather than addressing the root causes of the persecution of minorities in Bangladesh.
Simultaneously, he criticised the Indian response and accused right-wing groups and media of spreading misinformation, which fuelled Islamophobia in India and perpetuated divisive rhetoric. His extensive focus on “Indian propaganda” and conflating the violence with broader political unrest diminished the severity of targeted attacks on Hindus. He attempted to shift the narrative towards communalism in India rather than addressing the root causes of the persecution of minorities in Bangladesh.
The Wire kept its emphasis on the claims of exaggerated reports and Indian propaganda, setting a narrative to deflect attention from the alarming persecution of Hindus and other minorities in Bangladesh. Historical data highlights a significant decline in the Hindu population in Bangladesh, but The Wire, instead of verifying the statistics itself, relied on another propagandist portal’s report to downplay the population decline. Throughout its reporting, The Wire remained more invested in criticising the Indian response rather than holding the interim government in Bangladesh accountable.
