At least 42 incidents of communal violence, including 11 killings and one rape, were reported across the country in January, raising concerns about the safety of religious and ethnic minorities ahead of the upcoming national election, said Hindu Bouddha Christian Oikya Parishad yesterday. In a written statement, the organisation’s acting general secretary Monindra Kumar Nath said the organisation documented a total of 522 incidents nationwide over the last year. “The responsibility for any discouragement of minority voters must be borne by the government, the administration, the Election Commission, and political parties,” Nath said. “The government and the Election Commission are directly campaigning in favour of this, which is sorrowful, unfortunate, and clearly biased,” he said. The organisation urged the Election Commission and relevant authorities to act decisively to restore confidence among minority voters ahead of the polls.