Hindu groups take strong stance against family law reform

Dhaka, July 13 – Hindu community groups on Saturday strongly opposed the demand raised by some rights groups to reform their family law and urged the government to refrain from doing so.“We’ll launch a strong protest programme if the government reforms the law,” Dr JK Pal, convener of Hindu Paribarik Ain Poribartan Protirodh Committee (HPAPPC), told a press conference at the Jatiya Press Club.
Leaders and activists of more than 20 Hindu groups took part in the press conference.
Pal said the issue will be resolved with the help of religious scriptures and urged the government not to table any bill in this regard in Parliament.
Pal said some Hindu women want to create unrest in the guise of rights activism, and he called them ‘selfish’ and ‘ignorant’ who know nothing about the situation in villages.
Last month, rights activists said Hindu women in Bangladesh are deprived of their legitimate rights to property due to the existing ‘discriminatory’ law.
They urged the government to enact a unified family law to establish the rights of women, irrespective of religion, caste, and creed.
In a statement, the HPAPPC accused Bangladesh Mahila Parishad and several other NGOs of conspiring to destroy the Hindu family system.
“Any change to the law will be contrary to the scriptures and tantamount to destroying the community,” the HPAPPC said in a statement. “The Hindu community cannot accept it.”
HPAPPC Joint Convener Advocate Narayan Chandra Das said Hindus are minority in Bangladesh.
“The Awami League will lose their (Hindus’) votes if it reforms the law,” he said. – UNB