Bangladesh had hoped that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's presence at its 50th independence anniversary celebrations last week would be memorable. But the visit turned deadly as violent protests broke out against Mr Modi, leaving at least 12 people dead. Mr Modi is a polarising figure both at home and abroad. His government, led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has often been accused of pursuing policies that target Muslim minorities, and not doing enough to curb violence against them. The BJP denies the charges. His contentious image appears to have sparked the protests in the capital Dhaka - and the violence that followed no doubt was an embarrassment to both countries. It also casts a shadow on what has always been an amicable relationship between India and Bangladesh. What happened in Bangladesh? Mr Modi arrived in Dhaka for a two-day visit on 26 March, Bangladesh's independence day. It also coincided with the birth centenary of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the country's founder and father of the current prime minister, Sheikh Hasina. Leaders of the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Nepal were all guests of honour at the event. But Mr Modi's visit, which was meant to cap off the 10-day long celebrations, set off protests. A group of Muslim worshippers held a protest on 26 March after Friday prayers at a mosque in the city. Soon, clashes erupted and police used tear gas and batons to disperse the crowd. Protests then spread to other parts of the country and a hardline Islamist group, Hefazat-e-Islam, called for a nationwide shut down on 28 March to protest the attacks on those who held rallies against Mr Modi's visit. Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd, which threw rocks and stones at security forces. Dhaka and the eastern district of Brahmanbaria witnessed some of the worst violence. Buses, a train, a Hindu temple and several properties were damaged. A number of people with gunshot wounds were admitted to hospitals. "Madrassa students holding processions were attacked by security forces and supporters of the [governing] Awami League. That led to the conflict. But there was no need to open fire on unarmed people," Dr Ahmed Abdul Qader, vice chairman of the Hefazat, said. Officials say 12 protesters have died so far but the Islamist group say there were many more casualties."Bangladesh is a democracy and everybody has a right to say what they have to say. But they [the protesters] cannot take law and order in their hands," Anisul Haq, Bangladesh's law minister, told Sources. "They [the protesters] exceeded the limit. To protect the citizens of the country, and to protect law and order, the law enforcing agencies intervened," Mr Haq said.