Ever since the former Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, was deposed abruptly and unceremoniously and forced to flee to India on 5th August 2024, India's relations with Bangladesh have been on downward slide. There have been ample indicators from the Interim government in Bangladesh led by Chief Advisor, Muhammad Yunus, that the new dispensation in Bangladesh is inclined to make a serious departure from the balanced foreign policy pursued by Sheikh Hasina.
While strengthening economic ties with China she ensured that her government adequately addressed India's security concerns. Further, during her tenures as Prime Minister, several projects to enhance rail, road and maritime connectivity between the two countries were undertaken, besides strengthening security along the over 4000 km long border. Her image was arguably one of a reliable and trusted friend of India. She was successful in de-hyphenating India and China and in this regard enjoyed the understanding of India.
In contrast, the Interim government in Bangladesh has given enough signals that its priorities lie with China; it is bending backwards to embrace China.
In fact, in its bid to lure China, Muhamad Younus has gone a bit too far. In his visit to China (March 26-29), Muhammad Yunus is reported to have made a bizarre statement inter-alia that the seven states of India, the eastern part of India, are called the seven sisters. They are a landlocked region of India. They have no way to reach out to the ocean".
He further claimed that Bangladesh was “the only guardian of the ocean for all this region. So, this could be an extension of the Chinese economy. Build things, produce things, market things, bring things to China, bring it out to the whole rest of the world”. In other words, Yunus has offered Bangladesh to China to extend its influence deep into India's North East.
Muhammad Yunus has crossed the lines in the conduct of international relations. He simply cannot offer an integral part of India to a third country namely China for expanding, through Bangladesh, its (Chinese) influence in the sensitive northeast region of India where China lays territorial claims on the Indian territories; moreover, there is a long history of China’s involvement in promoting insurgency in the north-east.
It is very unlikely that China will take it seriously and oblige Mohammad Yunus, who is only a temporary phase in Bangladesh’s political history with a limited mandate of restoring stability and organising national elections. More importantly China at the moment appears very keen to reset relations with India and is going the extra mile in urging India to restore full normalcy in bilateral relations; this is amply reflected in the message from President Xi Jinping to the Indian President on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and China, the punch line of which is that bilateral relations let Dragon (China) and Elephant (India) tango together in mutual bilateral interests as well as for larger issue such as creating multipolar world.
Muhammad Yunus’s remarks have expectedly invited severe criticism in India cutting across the party lines both at the national and regional levels, particularly the North East, condemning the statement and describing it as provocative. No official statement from the Central government has come to notice; appears to be adopting a policy of strategic silence.
The attempt by Yunus to weaponise geography must be condemned unequivocally. At the same time, the flip side of the story is that this episode is likely to revive the debate over the urgency of expanding the land connectivity between the North East and the rest of India by exploring alternate land routes within the territories of India and reducing dependence on the sole-existing narrow (about only 20 km wide) Silliguri Corridor (Chickens neck). Routes running through neighbouring countries such as Bangladesh, Myanmar, Bhutan etc will always remain prone to the uncertainty of fast-changing global geopolitical realities. Undoubtedly alternative routes will require massive investments and engineering marvels. The aspiring Bharat will have to find suitable ways to address this issue of national security and strategic importance.
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer. The facts and opinions expressed here do not reflect the views of ETV Bharat)
