Amid waves of sectarian clashes following the arrest of Chittagong-based Hindu priest Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari, diplomatic and political tensions between India and Bangladesh have spiked alarmingly.

The Opposition joined the Indian government in voicing concern over multiple reports of attacks on the Hindu community in many parts of Bangladesh, but the new Dhaka regime helmed by Muhammed Yunus appeared to rubbish them.

Within hours of the Bangladesh foreign affairs ministry swatting away India’s concerns over Das’s arrest, insiders in the Yunus-led interim government spewed venom against India before demanding a ban on Iskcon, to which the monk was connected till a few months ago.

The Congress expressed deep concern over the “atmosphere of insecurity” being faced by religious minorities in the neighbouring country and Das’s arrest. The party’s media and publicity chairman, Pawan Khera, has urged India to prevail upon Bangladesh to ensure the security of the lives and properties of the Hindus.

Trinamool Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee left it to the Centre to deal with the issue before decrying the developments in Bangladesh.

“Some elements in the new regime want to hamper the relationship that we built with India over the years. I hope they fail in their mission,” said a former minister in the Sheikh Hasina government.

“There may be anti-India feelings in some quarters, but a majority of people are upset with the interim government for ruining the relationship with India,” added the minister, a central committee member of the Awami League.

Leading the anti-India brigade were Anti-discrimination Student Movement convener Hasnat Abdullah and July Shaheed Smriti Foundation general secretary Sarjis Alam who held India responsible for the protests by Hindu minorities in Chittagong over Das’s arrest.

They also held Iskcon responsible for the death of Saiful Islam Alif on the CMM court premises in Chittagong after the area turned into a battlefield following the court’s denial to grant bail to Das.

Nahid Islam, another student leader and information adviser to the Yunus regime, called India’s concern over Das’s arrest an “unwarranted interference” aimed at fomenting trouble.

“It is becoming increasingly evident that radical elements within the interim government are trying to work behind the scenes to pursue an agenda that is detrimental to India... The environment is steadily deteriorating (in Bangladesh) and may deteriorate further,” Harsh Vardhan Shringla, former Indian foreign secretary who was posted as the Indian high commissioner in Dhaka, told The Telegraph.

According to him, the continued attacks on minorities since the fall of the Hasina government on August 5 captures a pattern of intolerance that is eroding secularism in Bangladesh.

“Not only the Jamaat-e-Islami, but also the Hizb-ut-Tahrir, the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh and other elements that identify with al Qaida and the Islamic State, which want to establish an Islamic caliphate in Bangladesh, are taking control of the administration directly and indirectly,” Shringla said.

Ground reports from Chittagong corroborated Shringla’s concerns as an aide of Das told this newspaper that almost all the Hindu families in the port city spent a sleepless night on Tuesday amid raids by the police, army and other law-enforcing agencies.

“At least five temples and 100 houses were vandalised and 10 houses were burnt by Islamists. Over 400 people were injured in attacks by the Islamists and about 100 of them are grievously hurt. About 30 youths were picked up for their alleged role in the clashes on the court premises where the lawyer died,” said a close aide of Das.

The aide and several other residents of Chittagong and an academic in Dhaka told this correspondent that a couple of viral videos of the incidents on the court premises and adjoining areas had proved that Das’s supporters had no role in the killing of the lawyer.

“The radicals in the government are creating a narrative against India, Hinduism and Iskcon, which have become synonymous, to keep the youths on the streets in anagitated state.... That’s why they are blaming the Hindus and Iskcon for the killing and linking India to the incident. This is a conspiracy,” said a source who was present on the court premises.

The presence of Hasnat and Sarjis and senior leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami and other radical organisations at the funeral of the slain lawyer and the fiery comments made on the sidelines indicated that the leadership was not interested in maintaining peace.

The source said Das’s supporters at the court were unarmed. “They did not carry any arms.... The Islamists were carrying arms and we were under attack from them and also the law enforcers. We are living in fear as law and order have collapsed,” he said.

Though the mainstream media in Bangladesh has broadly overlooked the plight of the Hindus in the country since the fall of the Hasina regime, the matter has drawn global attention and become a political issue in India, especially Bengal.

The Bengal unit of the BJP, led by Suvendu Adhikari, led a rally to the deputy high commission of Bangladesh on Wednesday and submitted a memorandum demanding Das’s release and the safety of Hindus. He also urged the Centre to stop issuing visas to Bangladeshis before threatening to stop goods vehicles carrying essential items from crossing the border.

Against this backdrop, Indian foreign secretary Vikram Misri will be meeting his counterpart Jashim Uddin under the framework of the India-Bangladesh Foreign Office Consultation in Dhaka next month.

“Our government has issued a statement and highlighted the pertinent issues, but statements are the tip of the iceberg.... A lot of engagement behind the scenes is needed. India must proactively work and use whatever leverages we have to the best of our interest,” Shringla said.

The list of Indian interests, he said, included the stability of Bangladesh, the safety of the minorities and India’s security concerns.