Bangladesh court denying bail to Chinmoy Krishna Das is sad: ISKCON

A Bangladesh court on 2 January, Thursday rejected the bail plea of Chinmoy Krishna Das, a Hindu monk and spokesperson for the Bangladesh Sammilit Sanatan Jagran Jote, also associated with the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), during a hearing held under tight security, local media reported. Chattogram metropolitan sessions judge Md Saiful Islam rejected the bail plea after hearing arguments from both sides for around 30 minutes, said metropolitan public prosecutor advocate Mofizul Haque Bhuiyan to the Daily Star.  

As many as 11 Supreme Court lawyers led by Apurba Kumar Bhattacharjee represented the ISKCON priest in the high-profile sedition case. Following the hearing, Bhattacharjee said they plan to appeal to the high court for bail. Arrested on 25 November from the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka on sedition charges, Das has remained in jail amid growing calls for justice. The charges, filed against Das and 18 others, were linked to the hoisting of a saffron flag above the country's official flag during a protest rally on 25 October in Chattogram's Laldighi Maidan.  

The bail petition, supported by 20 advocates from Dhaka and Chittagong, highlights allegations of a false and fabricated case. Advocates argue that Das, suffering from health issues such as diabetes and respiratory problems, is being unjustly detained. His primary lawyer, Ravindra Ghosh, was previously barred from filing an anticipatory bail petition. Earlier on 11 December, a Bangladesh court rejected Das' initial bail plea, citing procedural lapses. Reports indicate that the absence of a valid power of attorney and lawyer representation led to the rejection.

The case took another turn when Subhashish Sharma, one of Das' lawyers, missed a 3 December hearing due to security concerns.

Prosecutor Mofizul Haque Bhuiyan stated that the absence of proper documentation and legal representation hindered earlier proceedings.

Meanwhile, India has called for a fair and transparent trial, emphasising the need to respect the legal rights of all involved. Advocates and supporters are hopeful that the court will consider the monk's deteriorating health and the procedural irregularities that have plagued the case so far.

Meanwhile, ISKCON Kolkata on Thursday described as "sad" the denial of bail to Chinmoy Krishna Das.

ISKCON Kolkata spokesperson Radharaman Das said the only bright side of the hearing of the case was that the Hindu monk was represented in court by lawyers, which could not be done on earlier hearings of the matter before the Bangladesh court. "It is sad that his bail prayer was refused. We were hoping that he would be freed in the new year," Radharaman Das said. 

The ISKCON Kolkata spokesperson also said Chinmoy Krishna Das' lawyers must be contemplating an appeal before a higher court in Bangladesh. He said the monk's health was also reported to be bad. "We hoped that on this ground and since he is in jail for the last 40 days, the court would grant bail," Das said. 

He expressed hope that when the monk's appeal challenging the denial of bail by the Chittagong court would be taken up before a higher court, his lawyers would be provided with enough security inside and outside court by the interim government.

On Wednesday, the ISKCON Kolkata spokesperson had said the interim government in Bangladesh should take legal action if there is a repeat of threats by some advocates of beating up any lawyer who would appear for Chinmay Krishna Das in court.