New Delhi: Amid the deep chill in India-Bangladesh ties following the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the persecution of religious minorities in the eastern neighbour, a word like 'optimistic' coming from a senior member of the interim government's advisory council in Dhaka may come as a surprise when it comes to relations between the two South Asian neighbours.
"We want to remain optimistic that we would be able to establish a good relationship with India making sure that bilateral interests are protected," Touhid Hossain, Foreign Affairs Adviser to the interim government in Bangladesh, said on Saturday while speaking at a roundtable title 'Bangladesh-India Relations: Expectations, Barriers and Future' organised by the South Asian Institute of Policy and Governance (SIPG) and the Department of Political Science and Sociology of the North South University.
He said that both South Asian neighbours expect to establish a good relationship with India accepting the reality in the context of the post-August 5 changed situation. He was referring to the change of regime in Bangladesh following the ouster of Hasina who was considered to be a close friend of India.
Hossain said that while Bangladesh had some concerns, there are still unresolved issues, even though the previous government made efforts to address India's concerns.
"Bangladesh's previous government addressed the concerns of India, but India did not address Bangladesh's concerns," he said.
He expressed the belief that India would move forward with an understanding of the changed situation in Bangladesh but at the same time acknowledged there are barriers, which, he said, is normal in any relationship.
"There has been a change in relations since August 5. This is the reality," he added.
Hossain's remarks come at a time when bilateral ties between India and Bangladesh are poised delicately following the regime change in Dhaka earlier this year. On August 5, Hasina was ousted from power following a mass uprising in protest against what people called her authoritarian style of governance. Three days later, Bangladesh President Mohammad Shahabuddin installed an interim government headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus as Chief Adviser.
With Hasina taking refuge in India, relations between the two South Asian neighbours have since been tense with no high-level visit taking place from either side till now. Meanwhile, the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) of Bangladesh has ordered the extradition of Hasina and many of her associates who fled the country after the upheaval in August.
The ouster of Hasina also saw the rise of extremist Islamist elements in Bangladesh’s political landscape leading to large-scale violence against religious minorities, particularly Hindus. India has been continuously voicing its concerns over these developments.
On Friday, during his weekly media briefing here, Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs, said that India has consistently and strongly raised with the Bangladesh government the threats and targeted attacks on Hindus and other minorities.
"Our position on the matter is very clear," Jaiswal said. "The interim government must live up to its responsibility of protecting all minorities. We are concerned at the surge of extremist rhetoric, increasing incidents of violence and provocation."
Earlier this week, the arrest of a Hindu monk of a temple in Chittagong and his subsequently being lodged in jail on alleged sedition charges also drew a strong protest from New Delhi. Dhaka responded by saying that India was interfering in the internal affairs of Bangladesh.
Hossain's remarks also come ahead of the next round of India-Bangladesh foreign office consultations scheduled to be held in Dhaka in December. This will be the first high-level bilateral meeting between the two sides since the change of regime in Bangladesh.
According to Dhaka-based journalist Saifur Rahman Tapan, the Bangladesh government is eager to host the foreign office consultations as it wants face-to-face interaction with Indian counterparts at some level.
"There are already apprehensions that India might back out and the foreign office consultations would not be held," Tapan told ETV Bharat over phone from Dhaka. "So, the Bangladesh government is trying its best to hold the foreign office consultations. If the meeting is not held, it will have a serious impact on Bangladesh politics."
He explained that India is always a major factor in Bangladesh politics as it is the biggest neighbour. He said that the persecution of the religious minorities in the aftermath of Hasina's ouster has seriously impacted bilateral relations between India and Bangladesh.
"Our government is apprehensive that India might launch an international campaign against Bangladesh," Tapan said. "So, it desperately needs to sit down with counterparts from India."
According to K Yhome, Fellow at the Shillong-based Asian Confluence think tank, once the political temperature comes down, the current regime in Bangladesh will understand it will have to engage with the government in New Delhi.
"When the situation allows them to get some space, they will try to bring about normalcy in ties," Yhome said. "At the end of the day, people in the government, the bureaucracy and politics are acutely aware of the inter-connectedness of the relationship between India and Bangladesh."
It may be mentioned here that despite the strain in bilateral ties, trade between the two countries is going on unabated. There has been no disruption in the supply of essential commodities from India to Bangladesh. Last month, Union Home Minister Amit Shah inaugurated a new land port facility at Petropole in West Bengal to boost trade ties with Bangladesh. This included a new passenger terminal building and a Maitri Dwar (Friendship Gate).
"Therefore, Hossain’s remarks are also a signaling to the Bangladeshi audience to say that our relationship with India is something that we can’t wish away," Yhome said.
He explained that whether it be the economy, the shared border, livelihood, or business, people on both sides are heavily interdependent.“Therefore, to keep economic ties going and to help people lead a normal life, a semblance of normalcy in ties with India is very important. They recognise that," Yhome said.
He said that the upcoming foreign office consultations indicate that both sides want to bring back some normalcy in the relationship.“Despite hiccups at the political level, both countries realise that bilateral ties at the institutional level should continue," Yhome said. "That is a key takeaway from Hossain's remarks."
At the same time, Yhome conceded that Hasina will remain a contentious issue in the relationship between the two countries. However, there will be efforts to decouple it from the other aspects of the relationship.
“Will they come up front and say that though the Hasina issue is there, let’s move forward with the other aspects of our relationship? That will be a positive signal from Dhaka,” Yhome said.
It remains to be seen how Dhaka takes forward Foreign Affairs Adviser Hossain’s remarks.
