Indo-Bangla bilateral ties are not dependent on the Awami League and it is “natural to evoke adverse reactions” in Bangladesh over India giving refuge to former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Senior leaders of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) said on Friday, August 9, 2024.

Ground Zero:The making of the Bangladesh revolt

Asserting that India was “very important” to Bangladesh, Senior BNP leader Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain told PTI over the phone from Dhaka that “it is high time to start a new chapter in bilateral relations.”

Mr. Hossain also 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 a mass uprising.

Echoing similar sentiments, BNP Vice-Chairman Abdul Awal Mintoo said it would have been better had Hasina not fled to India.

“It would have been better had she not fled to India, as we are yearning to have good relations with India. Bangladesh and its people believe and see India as a friend,” Mr. Mintoo told PTI.

He noted, however, that India is well within its rights, as per international law, to give refuge to someone they choose.

BNP govt. had ‘excellent relations’ with India: Hossain

Mr. Hossain said, “the impact of Sheikh Hasina getting refuge in India is quite natural. For example, if I don’t like you and someone else is supporting you, then I will naturally have a dislike for that person too. It is natural to have adverse reactions. But the fact is India-Bangladesh always shared good ties irrespective of whether the Awami League or Sheikh Hasina is in power.” “When BNP was in power, I was a minister in the Bangladesh government; we had seen how both countries shared an excellent relationship. India is very important to Bangladesh, as India has always supported the people of Bangladesh. Both countries will continue to have good bilateral ties,” he added.

The 77-year-old leader said the people of Bangladesh hope that the Indian government will “not always support a corrupt and dictatorial regime like the Awami League.” “We think the people of India have also realised this,” he said.

When asked if the BNP wants Ms. Hasina to be handed over to Bangladesh, he replied, “It is for the interim government to decide; as BNP, we have not taken a call on it.” Mr. Hossain also expressed hope that normalcy and democratic rights of the people would be restored at the earliest under the interim government led by Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus.

Mr. Yunus took the oath as the head of an interim government in Bangladesh. Yunus, 84, was administered the oath of office by President Mohammed Shahabuddin at a ceremony in Dhaka.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled the country following widespread protests against her government over a controversial quota system in jobs. She flew to the Hindon air base, near Delhi, in a Bangladesh military aircraft on Monday.

Also read: Protests in Tripura over alleged attacks on minorities, destruction of sculptors in restive Bangladesh

The veteran BNP leader welcomed the Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka attending the swearing-in ceremony of the interim government on Thursday, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s congratulatory message to the new regime. “It is high time to start a new chapter in bilateral relations,” he asserted.

“The Indian Prime Minister has congratulated the new interim regime; the Indian High Commissioner to Dhaka attended the ceremony. So we feel that India supports the new interim government and does not support those who fled the country,” he said.

Prime Minister Modi on Thursday, August 8, 2024, extended best wishes to Muhammad Yunus as he took the oath as the head of an interim government in Bangladesh, hoping for an early return to normalcy and ensuring the safety of Hindus and other minority communities in that country.

On his part, Mr. Mintoo said it is a “well-known fact in Bangladesh” that it was due to the support of their big neighbour that the Awami League could continue in power for so long despite deep resentment against its government.

Speaking on India’s closeness with the Awami League, Mr. Mintoo said, “It might have a small and temporary impact on bilateral ties, but it is in the interest of Bangladesh that it should not be long-standing.” “It is in the interest of Bangladesh that we should have very good relations with India. I would not have said this had this been any other neighbouring country like Bhutan or Nepal, but India is a very big country and one of the largest economies in the world. For the sake of good bilateral ties, both countries need to sit and talk and resolve the differences,” he said.

When asked about the INDIA OUT campaign in Bangladesh, both Mr. Hossain and Mr. Mintoo said these are “stray and temporary incidents” and neither the people of Bangladesh nor the BNP support such campaigns.

Mr. Mintoo said the new interim government of Bangladesh should immediately engage in dialogue with India to resolve all issues.

Regarding the comments during an interview to PTI by Sajeeb Wazed Joy, the son of Sheikh Hasina, that his mother will return to Bangladesh as soon as democracy is restored, Mintoo said, “Whether she wants to return or not is up to her; we can’t comment on it.” “The law of Bangladesh will take its own course. There are several cases of corruption and human rights violations during the Awami League regime,” he said.

Although Mr. Mintoo didn’t mention any timeline, he noted that his party, led by former Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, wants elections to be held at the earliest so that a democratic government can be established.

At least 469 people have died in the anti-government protests in Bangladesh in nearly three weeks since the protests began in July.

As dawn approached on Saturday morning of July 20, 2024 a disturbing scene unfolded in Monsur Nagar Housing Estate in Savar upazila, on the outskirts of Dhaka. Some eight to 10 plainclothes men identifying themselves as being from the detective branch (DB) of Bangladesh Police, surrounded the home of Abul Khair, a 70-year-old, who had fought in the 1971 war for freedom. The officers, armed and aggressive, began shouting and demanded that Khair open the gate, threatening to break it down if he did not. Soon, they forcefully entered, seized the family’s phones and detained Khair’s two sons, Arif Sohel, 27, and Mohammad Ali Jowel.

While Jowel was released, Sohel went missing for the next 36 hours. No police station the family approached denied his detention; nor did they show his arrest, says the family. He was allegedly beaten up and not given food. For this brief spell, the family says Sohel was another victim of ‘enforced disappearance’, a common tactic the people of Bangladesh say the former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government used, to suppress dissent. Then, he was officially shown as arrested and placed on a seven-day remand in a case his family says is fabricated. Sohel’s father says, “The behavior of the law enforcement agencies was similar to that of the Pakistani military during the Liberation War.”

Sohel is a student and convener of the Jahangir Nagar University of Students Against Discrimination movement that swept the country from July 1. The students were protesting the June 5 Dhaka Supreme Court ruling to reinstate a 30% government job quota for descendants of 1971 independence war veterans (the quota had been withdrawn in 2018).

Student unrest

Like many other movements across the world, including India’s Mandal Commission and China’s Tiananmen square, students across Bangladesh took to the streets in the thousands. They demanded the abolition of the quota and the establishment of a merit-based system instead. Underlying the anti-quota protests though, was the fear that members of the Awami League, the political party that led Bangladesh’s independence movement against Pakistan, would benefit.

The student protests were met with a brutal reaction from the government. Citizens went through raids, in which thousands of students, opposition leaders, and others were arrested for their alleged involvement in the Students Against Discrimination movement. A curfew was imposed on the midnight of July 19. Images of the army and police firing on students came out of the country, with India saying this was Bangladesh’s “internal matter”, the same way that Hasina’s government had described India’s Citizenship Amendment Act in 2022. In fact, Hasina was the first state guest to visit India after the Bharatiya Janata Party government came to power for a third term this year.

When violence broke out, about 300 Indian students who had been pursuing MBBS degrees, returned home. The internet was cut, and it was difficult to reach friends and relatives. So far, 439 people have died in the violence, as per Prothom Alo, a leading newspaper in Bangladesh.

Under pressure from students, the Supreme Court scaled back the quota on July 21 to 5%, with an additional 2% for ethnic minorities. Sifat Hasan Sakib, one of the organisers from Dhaka’s government-run Jagannath University, says, “We fought against discrimination, and students won the fight, even at the cost of lives. We want a peaceful environment on university campuses, which has been absent for a long time due to the student wing of the Awami League, Bangladesh Chhatra League. Regular students’ union elections can play a crucial role in protecting the rights of students.”

Students say the Bangladesh Chhatra League dominates student life on campus, doling out privileges only to its members, and capturing posts that no other student organisation was allowed to hold. Abdullah Al Mamun, a recent graduate from the English Department of Dhaka College, expressed his frustration, saying, “There was no alternative but to take to the streets in protest…. Sheikh Hasina would often boast about economic development, but at the same time, she allowed Chhatra League to dismantle the education system in Bangladesh.”

He says the integrity of job examinations was severely compromised. “It was common for exam paper leaks. Moreover, the viva boards were biased, often favoring candidates affiliated with Chhatra League. This left general students with little hope of securing a job. The system was rigged against us.”

Bangladesh’s tipping point

Similar to how the 1857 uprising was sparked by a long history of disenchantment with British oppression, the students’ movement emerged from deep-seated political and social angst against authoritarianism and human rights violations. Thousands joined from across the country, and it was so strong it compelled Hasina to resign in the presence of the three service chiefs and flee the country, on August 5, 2024. The former Prime Minister, elected for the fifth time in January 2024, arrived in India and continues to be there, her future plans uncertain.

When she left her official residence, Ganabhaban, the public stormed its lavish premises. The world saw images of people making off with suitcases and deep freezers, but also goats, fish, and a German Shepherd pup. Statues of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Hasina’s father, considered the founding father of Bangladesh, were vandalised, the video going viral.

The army chief, General Waker-Uz-Zaman, called for peace, and on August 6, 2024 it was announced that Muhammad Yunus, the 84-year-old pioneer of microfinance who won the Nobel prize in 2006, would lead an interim government, with 16 advisers, including two student representatives. The Hasina government had filed over 200 cases against the Grameen Bank founder, for corruption.

It wasn’t just student politics that brought the Hasina government down. According to Bangladeshi human rights organisations, security forces have committed over 600 enforced disappearances since 2009. While some people were later released, produced in court, or said to have died during an armed exchange with security forces, nearly 100 people remain missing, they say.

These actions angered people. For instance, Brigadier General (suspended) Abdullahil Amaan Azmi was released from the detention centre known as Aynaghar (House of Mirrors), after eight years of captivity in the early hours of August 6. Azmi is the son of late Ghulam Azam, the former ameer (chief) of the Jamaat-e-Islami, a religion-based political party that was started in 1941 and has its roots in present-day Pakistan. He was allegedly forcibly picked up from his residence on August 23, 2016, and had since been missing. The Hasina government had repeatedly denied the existence of Aynaghar and 23 other detention camps, where political opponents were allegedly kept.

The Hasina government had, on August 1, 2024, banned the Jamaat-e-Islami, saying it was a threat to public security. The Jamaat is a key ally of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), who was then in jail on charges of corruption, but now released. “They (Jamaat and BNP) just used the students as their shield,” Hasina had said, when Italian Ambassador Antonio Alessandro called on her, news agency PTI reported.

The Jamaat’s central executive committee member and the party’s media and publicity secretary, Matiur Rahman Akanda, calls the 2024 election a “dummy election”.

After the fall of the Hasina regime, families of political prisoners secretly jailed under her rule have gathered in front of Director General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI) headquarters. Sanjida Islam Tulee, co-founder of Mayer Dak, an organization of the families of the victims of ‘enforced disappearances’, says, “We have learnt from recently released former army officer Brigadier General Abdullahil Aman Azmi that there are many others in that Aynaghor. We went to the DGFI office to find out who is detained there and to talk about the issue.” They demand that the prisoners be released together instead of separately.

Media strangulation

The Bangladeshi media have often accused the government of stifling freedom of speech and assembly. According to a research paper by the Centre for Governance Studies (CGS), at least 451 journalists were sued under the Digital Security Act (DSA) since its inception and 255 of them were sued for their journalistic reports. Among the accused, 209 journalists are associated with national-level Bangladesh media and 197 with regional media outlets. The CGS found that at least 4,520 people have been charged in 1,436 cases filed between October 2018 and September 2023.

Raihan Hossain, a journalist from Jago News, an online news outlet in Bangladesh, says journalists in Bangladesh have faced huge challenges, particularly when reporting on sensitive issues like the extra-judicial killings, enforced disappearances, and the corruptions.

He says, “Journalists who dared to investigate and report on these issues often faced severe threats. The powers-that-be would go to great lengths to silence us, using intimidation and fear to prevent any negative coverage. It was a constant battle, and many of us were put in positions where our safety was at risk simply for trying to do our jobs.”

He adds that the situation was further complicated by the government’s blatant ‘favouritism’ for certain media outlets. “Newspapers that aligned with the government’s agenda were granted numerous facilities and privileges, while those that attempted to maintain journalistic integrity were often deprived of essential resources. This made it increasingly difficult for independent journalism to thrive, as the government’s influence over the media landscape created an environment where only the voices that supported the official narrative could prosper.”

A rise in minority violence

After Hasina’s fall, there has also been a rise in violence against the Hindu minority. According to Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council (BHBCUC), 200-300 Hindu homes and businesses were vandalized, and 15-20 temples were damaged. Many have been injured.

Rana Dasgupta, the general secretary of the BHBCUC Oikya Parishad says, “Some of those whose homes were attacked may be directly involved in Awami League politics, but 98% are Hindus not involved in political activity.” He hopes the interim government will restore stability and protect minorities. Student and Jamaat leaders have put out statements asking supporters to guard temples and churches as diplomats and rights groups expressed concerns over reports of attacks on minority groups.

Monzurul Islam, president of the Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami, says they do not consider any group a minority or majority in the country: “Everyone is equal,” he says, despite the group’s belief that the reason for Hasina’s political dominance in the country was India. Hindus, who form 8% of the population of over 17 crore, were traditionally Awami League supporters.

Photographer and human rights activist Shahidul Alam says, “India is effectively Bangladesh’s only neighbour. It is also a major trade partner. It makes no sense for Bangladesh not to have a cordial relationship with India.” He hopes though that a future relationship will be based on equality, rather than that of a ‘big brother’.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
| Photo Credit: PTI

GUWAHATI

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday (August 7) did not rule out the possibility of some extremist groups of the northeast setting up bases again in Bangladesh.

He also said the evolving political situation in Bangladesh after the violent fall of Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League government could pose a security threat to the region due to the probable displacement of people in the neighbouring country, especially religious minorities.

“The situation in Bangladesh is worrying for us for two reasons. If the unrest continues, many people will be desperate to cross over into India. This makes it imperative for us to secure our borders,” the Chief Minister told journalists at an event in eastern Assam’s Golaghat district.

“Moreover, extremist outfits of the northeast may try to exploit the tumultuous situation to set up bases in Bangladesh again, posing a renewed threat to our regional stability. During her tenure as the Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina uprooted all the terror groups of the region that were operating from Bangladesh,” Dr. Sarma said.

Eye on ULFA(I)

Barring a few such as the United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent (ULFA-I) headed by the fugitive Paresh Baruah, and Meghalaya’s Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council, most extremist groups in the northeast have either been disbanded, or are engaged in talks.

Beginning with Mizoram’s Laldenga and his Mizo National Front, many extremist groups of the northeast carried out hit-and-run operations in India from their bases in Bangladesh. Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence and Bangladesh’s Directorate General of Forces Intelligence allegedly helped these outfits set up hideouts in the country.

The ULFA established camps in Dhaka, Satcherri, and Sherpur in Bangladesh in 1991 and established close ties with the pro-Pakistan Bangladesh Nationalist Party headed by Khaleda Zia and other political parties, including the pro-India Awami League.

The ULFA was initially not troubled by the Awami League, which turned hostile toward all extremist groups of the northeast after coming to power in 2009. The leaders and members of most of these outfits were either driven away or handed over to India.

The capture of five members of the Isak-Muivah (I-M) faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) in Tripura’s Kailasahar area in October 2009 confirmed the group’s presence in Bangladesh. Caught by Border Security Force personnel after crossing into India, the five had escaped after killing six fellow NSCN (I-M) members at the outfit’s camp in Bangladesh’s Moulvi Bazar district.

A boy celebrates with a national flag after the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Aug. 6.
| Photo Credit: AP

India is yet to acknowledge the reasons that triggered the student protests leading to the ouster of Sheikh Hasina as Bangladesh Prime Minister, said a leading member of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), the Opposition in the country.

Speaking to The Hindu from Thailand, where he has been living in exile for the past few years, the leader said External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s speech appeared to be “biased” against the students and that India could have played a more active role in preventing the crackdown against the protesters.

“Mr. Jaishankar started his speech by pointing out that there was tension in Bangladesh after the January election but failed to mention the reason behind the tension. It shows that Indian policymakers are yet to acknowledge the fact that the tension in Bangladesh was because of the fact that the January elections were a fraudulent exercise that excluded the Opposition,” said the leading BNP member over the phone.

“As the Foreign Minister of the largest country in South Asia, Mr. Jaishankar should have given an unbiased version of the events in Bangladesh,” he said pointing out that the protest and the subsequent violence were the results of a flawed political process.

Speaking in both houses of the Parliament, Mr. Jaishankar had pointed out that the months-long tension in Bangladesh erupted into the student protests of July and that the students had converged on Dhaka despite curfew.

The BNP leader did not agree with several points mentioned in the speech of the External Affairs Minister and said, “Mr. Jaishankar seems to be blaming the students for protesting. The issue is what was done to reduce tension by the government? Instead of dialogue, the Hasina government fired at the students.”

Speaking on condition of anonymity, he said Indian decisionmakers did not do enough to convince Ms. Hasina against holding a ‘flawed’ election. He said India should have done more to prevent Ms. Hasina from holding the election in January 2024 as that was not transparent. He argued that Ms. Hasina had jailed many leaders of the Opposition and several like him had to seek shelter elsewhere. He said he and other members of the BNP are eager to return to Bangladesh as early as possible. He cited the remarks by Mr. Jaishankar about the reported attacks on the minority communities and said the current situation requires mainstream political parties like the BNP to hit the ground to control the situation from spiraling out of control.

“Already we are doing our best and have created BNP volunteers groups in every locality to defend Hindu temples and other minority places of worship. Only political parties with deep public network can prevent communal clashes,” he said.

“Our leader Khaleda Zia has been freed by the military administration which is currently running the country. But that is just the beginning as many leaders are yet to be released,” said the BNP figure urging India to engage with all sections of politics in Bangladesh. He, however, displayed anxiety over the delay in the formation of the interim government. He said that as per the constitutional rules, a caretaker government had to be formed on August 6 soon after the dissolution of the government which will hold a free and fair election three months later. He urged Indian policymakers to rebuild relations and engage with the new political players.

People roam on the street after curfew has been proclaimed and army deployment in the country, as violence erupts following anti-quota protests, in Dhaka, on July 20, 2024.
| Photo Credit: REUTERS

The United States has recommended that its citizens not travel to Bangladesh and allowed the voluntary departure of its non-emergency government employees and family members in light of the ongoing civil unrest in the South Asian country.

The development comes just a day after the U.S. issued a new travel advisory for Bangladesh, urging Americans to reconsider travelling to the country.

Authorities in Bangladesh imposed a strict curfew across the country and military personnel patrolled parts of the capital to quell further violence after days of clashes over the allocation of government jobs left more than 40 people dead and hundreds injured.

The US Department of State raised the Travel Advisory Level for Bangladesh to Level 4 — ‘Do Not Travel’.

“Do not travel to Bangladesh due to civil unrest, crime, and terrorism,” the State Department said, adding, “The department allowed for the voluntary departure of non-emergency US government employees and family members.”

“The Government of Bangladesh has declared a curfew throughout Bangladesh, ordering everyone to stay indoors. The Bangladeshi Army has been deployed throughout the country to reinforce the police. Telecommunications have been interrupted in Dhaka and across the country. Due to the security situation, there may be a delay in provision of routine consular services,” the advisory stated.

U.S.’s new advisory

The U.S. State Department said crimes such as muggings, burglaries, assaults, and illegal drug trafficking constitute the majority of criminal activity in Bangladesh’s major cities, but there are no indications foreigners are being targeted because of their nationality. These crimes tend to be situational, based on time and location, it said.

The advisory said attacks can happen with little or no warning, with terrorists targeting public areas such as tourist locations, transportation hubs, markets/shopping malls, restaurants, places of worship, school campuses, and government facilities.

Because of the security concerns, the U.S. Embassy personnel in Bangladesh are subject to some movement and travel restrictions.

The U.S. government may have limited ability to provide emergency services to its citizens in Bangladesh due to these travel restrictions, a lack of infrastructure and limited host government emergency response resources, it said.

The department asked U.S. nationals to take certain precautions, such as avoiding demonstrations and political gatherings, monitoring local media for breaking events and being prepared to adjust plans, in case they decide to travel to Bangladesh.

“Do not physically resist any robbery attempt. Get to a safe area and report any criminal incident to local authorities. Enrol in the Smart Traveller Enrolment Program to receive alerts including updates on consular services so that it is easier to locate you in an emergency,” the other recommendations from the State Department stated.