Over 2,900 attacks on minorities in Bangladesh ‘grave concern’: India

New Delhi: India on Friday said the "unremitting hostilities" against minorities in Bangladesh is a matter of grave concern even as it reiterated that the upcoming parliamentary polls in that country must be free, fair and inclusive.

New Delhi also reacted cautiously to the homecoming of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman saying it should be seen in the context of ensuring inclusive polls.

External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India condemns the recent killing of Hindu youth, Dipu Chandra Das, in Bangladesh's Mymensingh.

"The unremitting hostilities against the minorities in Bangladesh including Hindus, Christians and Buddhists is a matter of grave concern. We condemn the recent killing of a Hindu youth in Bangladesh and expect that the perpetrators of the crime will be brought to justice," he said at his weekly media briefing.

Jaiswal said India is closely following the developments in Bangladesh.

Over 2,900 incidents of violence against minorities have been documented in Bangladesh by independent sources during the tenure of interim government, he noted.

"The incidents of violence against minorities in Bangladesh cannot be brushed aside as media exaggeration or dismissed as political violence," Jaiswal said.