Kolkata: India and Bangladesh should ignore minor irritants and continue strengthening their close relations as the two nations continue their joint war against terrorism, said Shantanu Mukherjee, IPS (Retd), a security analyst specialising on South Asia and terrorism. The two sides also need to guard against external actors who may be working to jeopardise the interests of both sides, Mukherjee, who has been National Security Advisor to Mauritius, told PTI in an interaction.
Certain external forces often try to create animosity between the two countries, especially on religious lines. India should steer clear of such attempts, Mukherjee cautioned. He also pointed out that the sentiments of animosity are fuelled by various forces, including countries that propagate anti-India sentiments. Mukherjee warned against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's support of Muslim brotherhood and the repercussions India may face if such organisations infiltrate into the region to ruin its secular fabric as well as "traditional enemies to our west and north" who have never wanted India and Bangladesh to be friends.
India, under all circumstances, must keep its security conditions intact. It should be watchful of religious indoctrination in the neighbourhood. That said, the countries must all strengthen their bond, notwithstanding the differences that might crop up between them from time to time, he explained. Social media is also used as a potential tool to fuel feelings of hostility between people in the two countries, Mukherjee said.
In the past, too, attempts were made to brew trouble between the two countries. During my stay there in the 1980s, I have seen that a certain section of people was spreading ill feelings about our country. But over-riding all this are factors that bind our people -- Bangladesh celebrates Poila Boisakh' (Bengali New Year) and Pochishe Boisakh' (Rabindra Nath Tagore's birthday) with more lan than people in Bengal do, he pointed out. The security expert, pointing to recent hate crimes in Narail in Bangladesh, however also said that while India must strengthen relations with its neighbour, it need not condone activities by extremists in the neighbouring country.
Mukherjee heaped praises on Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, calling her a statesman of high calibre, who has over the years not just worked to consolidate ties between the neighbours but also taken her country to new heights. Be it the emancipation of women or upholding the principles of secularism, Hasina has always been at the forefront. With time, she has matured as a politician and has gone on to become a statesman. The country is headed for elections next year, and Hasina, if voted to power, is expected to bolster the relationship with her neighbours, which includes other countries too, he noted.
Asked about the cross-border infiltration woes, Mukherjee said the menace is on the decline. A section of people still go across the border illegally and enter India in search of jobs, but the figures have gone down over the past decades. Bangladesh has been doing pretty well with its GDP rising even during the pandemic. Under such circumstances, the scale of outward migration goes down. There are also Indians who now travel to Bangladesh to work as experts in garments and other industrial sectors, he added. (PTI)
