The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council (BHBCUC), a civil society organisation representing religious and ethnic minorities in Bangladesh, claimed in a press conference on 30 January 2025 that between 21 August and 31 December, 174 incidents of violence against religious minorities occurred in the country. Among these incidents, the organisation reported 23 killings. Soon after, the current Yunus government responded, alleging that BHBCUC was spreading rumours and misinformation, asserting that none of these individuals were killed because of their religious identity but rather due to political rivalry, land disputes, or as victims of general crimes. Sadly, of all possible approaches, that was the government’s first response to the BHBCUC report, without even looking into the claims or investigating them. Such sweeping claims from the current government are not new as we have witnessed numerous times since they took power in August last year. It appears that the government has adopted a ‘deny and discredit first’ policy against any claims

of human rights violations. This is very concerning. Previously, in December, the current Press Secretary (better termed as ‘spokesperson’) made the same assertion as above. Worryingly, such government responses are enabling certain commentators, such as 2 Cents Podcasts, to spread hatred against the Hindu populace of Bangladesh by labelling them as Indian sympathisers or agents. However, this article is not about any specific kinds of activism but rather about the broader question: How does a crime become classified as a political crime or a religion-based crime? The Yunus government has consistently argued, since 8 August 2024, that most crimes committed against religious and ethnic minorities are politically motivated killings—as if killing someone for political reasons is somehow justifiable. Political crimes and crimes committed against individuals due to their religious identity are indeed distinct in their motivations and objectives, though they often overlap. When comparing a person targeted for their political beliefs to one targeted for their religious beliefs, the key…