Bangladesh’s foreign affairs advisor, Mohammed Touhid Hossain, spoke on Saturday about the changing relationship between Bangladesh and India. He said that things have shifted since former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was pushed out of power in August. Hossain was speaking at a seminar at North South University in Dhaka.
He mentioned that after August 5, Bangladesh’s relationship with India changed and that it’s important for Bangladesh to think about this new reality when building its ties with India. “I believe India will understand how to move forward with Bangladesh under the new situation,” said Hossain.
The relationship between the two countries has gotten tense since Hasina stepped down, following protests led by student groups. A caretaker government led by Nobel Prize winner Muhammad Yunus took over after her departure.
Touhid Hossain also noted that the previous government worked hard to ease India’s worries. He said, “They tried to remove India’s concerns. We also have our own worries. Issues arise when our problems are not addressed,” but he didn’t give more details.
He is hopeful that Bangladesh can still build a good relationship with India. “We will not harm anyone. We hope that no one will harm us,” he added. Hossain also suggested that the media in India exaggerates the situation and urged Bangladeshi media to report more objectively.
Recently, India asked Bangladesh’s interim government to protect Hindus and other minority groups from threats and violence. They also called for fairness in handling the case of Chinmoy Krishna Das, a Bangladeshi monk who was arrested on a sedition charge.
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