Kolkata. Amid the ongoing turmoil in Bangladesh, the main opposition party Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has expressed its opinion on Sheikh Hasina’s escape from Bangladesh to India and India-Bangladesh relations. BNP leaders said that India was and still is the most important neighbor for Bangladesh. They also raised questions about Sheikh Hasina’s visit to India and said that she should not have gone there.
Senior BNP leaders said on Friday that India-Bangladesh bilateral relations do not depend on the Awami League and that India’s granting of asylum to former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina “is bound to cause adverse reaction in Bangladesh”. Describing India as “very important” for Bangladesh, senior Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leader and former minister Khandker Mosharraf Hossain said that “this is the right time to start a new chapter in bilateral relations”.
Hussain welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s congratulatory message to the interim government in Bangladesh and hoped that the Indian government would no longer continue to support the Awami League and Sheikh Hasina, who was forced to flee the country following massive protests. BNP Vice President Abdul Awal Mintu also expressed a similar opinion and said that it would have been better if Hasina had not fled to India.
He said, “It would have been better if she had not fled to India, because we want good relations with India. Bangladesh and its people consider and see India as a friend.” However, he underlined that according to international law, India has the right to give asylum to whomever it wants.
Hussain said, “The impact of Sheikh Hasina taking refuge in India is absolutely natural. For example, if I don’t like you and someone else is supporting you, then naturally I will not like that person. It is natural to have adverse reactions. But the fact is that India-Bangladesh have always had good relations, whether the Awami League is in power or Sheikh Hasina.”
He said, “When BNP was in power, I was a minister in the Bangladesh government. We saw that there were excellent relations between the two countries. India is very important for Bangladesh, because India has always supported the people of Bangladesh. Good bilateral relations will continue between the two countries.”
The 77-year-old leader said the people of Bangladesh expect the Indian government to not always support a corrupt and dictatorial regime like the Awami League. “We think the people of India also realise this,” he said. Asked if the BNP wanted Hasina to be handed over to Bangladesh, he said, “It is for the interim government to decide. As BNP, we have not taken any decision on this.”
Hussain also expressed hope that the normal and democratic rights of the people would be restored as soon as possible under the interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus. Professor Yunus was sworn in as the head of the interim government in Bangladesh on Thursday. President Mohammad Shahabuddin administered the oath of office to 84-year-old Yunus in Dhaka.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and left the country after massive protests against her government over the controversial reservation system in jobs. She flew to Hindon airbase near Delhi on Monday in a Bangladesh military plane.
Hussain, a senior BNP leader, welcomed the Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka at the swearing-in ceremony of the interim government on Thursday and thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his congratulatory message for the new regime. He said, “This is the right time to start a new chapter in bilateral relations.”
He said, “The Indian Prime Minister has congratulated the new interim government. The Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka attended the ceremony. So we feel that India supports the new interim government and does not support those who flee the country.”
Prime Minister Modi on Thursday congratulated Mohammad Yunus as the head of the interim government in Bangladesh. He expressed hope that normalcy would be restored soon and the safety of Hindus and other minority communities in Bangladesh would be ensured. Mintu said that it is a ‘well-known fact’ in Bangladesh that the Awami League could remain in power for so long despite deep resentment against its government only because of the support of its big neighbour.
On India’s proximity to the Awami League, Mintu said, “It may have a short and temporary impact on bilateral relations, but it is in Bangladesh’s interest that it does not last long.” He said, “It is in Bangladesh’s interest that we have very good relations with India. If it was any other neighbouring country like Bhutan or Nepal, I would not have said this, but India is a very big country and one of the largest economies in the world. For the sake of good bilateral relations, both countries should sit down and talk and resolve their differences.”
Bangladesh, Narendra Modi, sheikh hasina
FIRST PUBLISHED : August 9, 2024, 21:27 IST