Bangladesh, India must have ‘good working relations’ with each other, says Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain

Both Bangladesh and India must have “good working relations” with each other, the country’s Foreign Affairs Advisor, Mohammed Touhid Hossain, said, describing New Delhi as Dhaka’s “largest neighbour.”

Speaking to ANI, Touhid said that they agreed to maintain working relations but they did not discuss the issue of Sheikh Hasina.

“I think my conversation with Dr Jaishankar was constructive. It seems to me that both India and Bangladesh want to have good working relations with each other. And Dr. Jaishankar recognised that. I would put it very simply; we both had free and fair discussions and we both recognised that we must have good working relations with each other,” the Bangladesh Foreign Affairs Adviser said late on Monday.

“The issue of Sheikh Hasina was not discussed with him,” he told ANI.

India and Bangladesh share more than 4,000 km of common land borders and there are also maritime boundaries in the Bay of Bengal that the two countries share with each other.

Recently, Bangladesh’s Foreign Affairs Adviser, Mohammed Touhid Hossain, met with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

Touhid clarified that everything will go as usual despite the fact that the process of issuance of visas has not achieved normalcy

“Trade has been going on. After the short gap, immediate after the fall of the government, trade again picked up going on. The projects that are ongoing and approved agreements definitely go on,” he said.

“About the people-to-people contact, the Indian visa offices are not opened as yet fully. It is up to them when they will do it. This is the decision of the Indian government when that happened, people have the visas to go to India. Our offices in India are issuing visas to those who are coming for Bangladesh visas. I think even though there is some pause some times, it is pick up,” Touhid added.

Touhid Hossain further added that the bilateral relations between Bangladesh and India “will continue normally.”

“I think we have a lot of commonalities as well as a lot of complimentary. I think the bilateral relations interest being…particular relations will continue normally and as I said, both countries recognised that they need the help of the other country,” he said.

Touhid said they will find a way to serve the people of both countries, instead of hostilities amid tensions.

“Well, there are people in both our countries who have some feelings, sometimes strong feelings against the undone; but that does not mean that we have to be a nematic situation. We have interest in India as much as India has interest in Bangladesh. I think it is the question of mutual interests. I think the two sides will ultimately come to a position where the interests can best serve,” he said.

The Bangladesh Foreign Affairs advisor, however, did not make any comment regarding the media reports which claimed that the US government manufactured a coup to replace Sheikh Hasina, but he said the movement was spontaneous by the younger generations.

“I really would not make any comment on that because we can not undermine the sacrifices made by the young generations, the students and other youth to laid down their lives for a change from the autocratic regime to possibility of a democratic and inclusive future. It is a supreme sacrifice made by the younger generation which resulted the change of government, resignation and departure of Sheikh Hasina. It was not as far as I could see at least it was spontaneous agitations that ultimately turned into one point demand that government must change,” Touhid said.

A month ago, a student-led movement ousted Bangladesh’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, after weeks of protests and clashes that killed over 600 people. Sheikh Hasina fled to India on August 5 and interim government led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus was formed.

The minority groups in Bangladesh alleged Hindus were attacked immediately after the political changes, but the interim government says those were not religious but political in nature.

“Immediately after the departure of Sheikh Hasina, there was a vacuum in administrations and there was also a problem of policing because police had been actually placed against the young generation so when Sheikh Hasina departed, police was not their own duty. At that time tensions and sentiments ran very high so some incidents were there but putting it as anti Hindu agitation or anti Hindu action, would be utterly wrong,” Touhid said.

“The violence did take place against mostly Awami League loyalists, we do not condone that of course, because you can not take law in own hands but the fact remains that in that moment of agitation, some violences did take place but that was not on the basis of against Hindu or Muslim,” he said.

“You know the more Muslims, if you count by the religion, more Muslims were attacked that time than Hindus, it was because some sought of an agitation against the Awami League supporters were taking place which we had able to contain already immediately after taking the government. I don’t think there was any complain such action at this moment in this country,” the Foreign Affairs advisor further added.

In response to a question whether Durga Puja will be allowed, as protests were seen against it quite recently, Touhid said, “This is quite strange. There could be a fringe that may not like Durga Puja. Durga Puja has been performed in this country for ages and there have been no instances when Durga Puja was not held.”

“Certainly, the worshippers who want to do so have the opportunity to do so. There should be no doubt about this,” he strongly asserted.

Bangladesh is facing a fluid political situation with Sheikh Hasina, tendering her resignation from her post on August 5 in the wake of mounting protests. Hasina, who fled Bangladesh for India in a military aircraft on August 5, is currently staying in India.

The protests, led majorly by students demanding an end to a quota system for government jobs, took the shape of anti-government protests.