With an Eye Toward Indian American Votes, Trump Decries Violence in Bangladesh – The Diplomat

Since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government on August 5 this year, reports of violence against minorities, particularly Hindus, have surfaced in Bangladesh, drawing international attention. Nearly three months later, former U.S. president and Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump has belatedly decided to weigh in on the issue.

In a post on the microblogging site X (formerly Twitter) on October 31, Trump expressed his condemnation, stating, “I strongly condemn the barbaric violence against Hindus, Christians, and other minorities who are getting attacked and looted by mobs in Bangladesh, which remains in a total state of chaos.”

In the latter part of his post, Trump extended his criticism beyond Bangladesh to a broader critique of the Biden administration, asserting that such chaos would never have occurred during his own tenure. “It would have never happened on my watch,” he wrote, targeting both Vice President Kamala Harris and President Joe Biden. 

He blamed their administration for overlooking the interests of Hindu communities worldwide, saying, “Kamala and Joe have ignored Hindus across the world and in America.” He continued to highlight the administration’s alleged failures in addressing international crises, from the ongoing violence in Israel to the war in Ukraine and issues at the U.S. southern border. 

Trump then reinforced his commitment to Hindu Americans by promising to protect them from what he described as the “anti-religion agenda of the radical left.” In doing so, he offered reassurance to Hindu voters in the United States, saying, “We will fight for your freedom.” 

He also emphasized his intentions to strengthen the India-U.S. relationship, which he sees as crucial to his platform. “Under my administration, we will also strengthen our great partnership with India and my good friend, Prime Minister Modi,” Trump added, positioning himself as both a defender of global Hindu rights and an ally of India, two focal points that could resonate with Indian American voters.

Thus, Trump’s condemnation of the violence against minorities in Bangladesh appears to be more about advancing his own political agenda than genuinely addressing the issues faced by those communities.

The timing of Trump’s statement is especially noteworthy, as it comes not only five days before the U.S. elections but also three days after the release of the Indian-American Attitudes Survey 2024. This survey, conducted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in collaboration with YouGov, indicated a potential decline in support for the Democratic Party among Indian Americans.

Although Harris, the Democratic candidate, could become the first Indian American president, the survey found that she is projected to receive fewer votes from the Indian American community compared to Biden in 2020. Approximately 61 percent of Indian American respondents indicated they would vote for Harris, marking an 11-point decrease from Biden’s support among Indian Americans in the survey taken before last presidential election. In contrast, Trump appears to be gaining traction within the community, with 31 percent of Indian American respondents expressing support for him in the upcoming election, compared to just 22 percent in 2020. 

This shift is significant within the 5.2 million-strong Indian American community, the second-largest immigrant group in the United States after Mexican Americans. Of this population, about 2.6 million are eligible voters, making them a potentially influential bloc in the November 5 election. 

While still trailing Harris among Indian American voters, Trump stands to gain from any further erosion of support for the Democratic Party within this group. Drawing attention to the violence against Hindu minorities in Bangladesh – an issue often amplified in Indian media – Trump taps into longstanding concerns among many Indian Americans about the treatment of Hindus abroad.

However, it is essential to note that although genuine incidents of violence against minorities in Bangladesh have indeed been reported, with rising fears of Islamic fundamentalism, much of the Indian media’s coverage appears exaggerated, with disinformation rampant in reporting. The false reports are apparently aimed to undermine the political shift in Bangladesh following the mass uprising that ousted Hasina’s 15-year regime, seen by many as autocratic. By emphasizing and even outright fabricating these incidents, some Indian media outlets have sought to frame the unrest as a reflection of systemic threats to Hindus, possibly diverting from the broader democratic movement within Bangladesh.

Trump’s narrative echoes Indian media portrayals, which frequently call for global awareness and intervention on behalf of Hindu rights in Bangladesh. This alignment may resonate with Indian Americans who share similar concerns with their counterparts in India, particularly around minority rights and security in the region. Thus, Trump’s statement may strike a chord among Indian American voters by acknowledging these issues as part of his broader critique of the Biden administration.

In response to Trump’s comments, Hindu American groups have already expressed support. Utsav Sanduja, founder of Hindus for America First, voiced his gratitude for Trump’s stance. “I’m very grateful to President Trump, eternally grateful and eternally appreciative. It sucks that Kamala Harris hasn’t said anything about this issue. I think that there’s going to be a big change in this election coming from this,” he was quoted as saying by PTI. 

“With this statement, it’s going to open up the eyes of more Indian Americans, Hindu Americans, and so on. They’re going to give President Trump the vote,” Sanduja added. 

HinduACTion, a Hindu American activist group, also thanked Trump for his statement, calling it a “message for the ages” and “an honest acknowledgment of the socio-political aggression faced by the Hindus in the US and the geopolitical challenges faced by Hindus worldwide.”

HinduACTion’s executive director, Utsav Chakrabarti, told Indian media outlet Republic TV, “This is one of the first times that an American Presidential candidate has fully acknowledged atrocities against Hindus in any part of the world.”

By appealing to Indian Americans’ cultural and religious concerns, Trump is not only reinforcing his commitment to their values but also challenging the Democratic Party’s long-standing hold on this voter bloc. 

His strategic focus on global Hindu rights and his pledge to support India-U.S. relations could indeed attract undecided voters or prompt some Indian Americans to reconsider their support for Harris, potentially increasing his share of this critical voting group in a tightly contested election.

Unfortunately, though, any meaningful solutions to the violence against minorities in Bangladesh, or elsewhere in the world, remains a distant second to his political agenda, as evidenced by the timing of his statement: nearly three months after the violence he condemned, but just in time for voting.