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This is an archive article published on December 3, 2024
Bangladesh calls India envoy, its mission in Agartala suspends visa services
Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma said that India and Bangladesh have a "wide-ranging and multi-faceted relationship" and that it could not be "reduced to just one issue".
Police officers stand guard outside Indian High Commission after a call for anti-India protests in Dhaka, on Tuesday. (Photo: AP)
A day after some protesters breached security barricades at the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in Agartala and vandalised the property, Bangladesh summoned Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma to the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Dhaka on Tuesday.
In Agartala, the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission suspended all its visa and consular services “until further notice”, citing a “security situation”, even as seven persons allegedly involved in the incident were arrested.
The incident occurred during a protest against the arrest of Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das in Bangladesh. Three police personnel posted at the Assistant High Commission premises in Agartala have been suspended and departmental proceedings initiated for alleged negligence of duty.
A PTI report from Dhaka quoted a Bangladesh foreign ministry official as saying that “he (Verma) came as he was asked to come when we conveyed our concerns.” Bangladesh Foreign Affairs Adviser Mohammad Touhid Hossain had earlier said the Indian envoy was asked to come to the foreign office after the Agartala incident.
Verma, on the other hand, said India wants to build a “constant, stable, constructive relationship” with Bangladesh, and no single issue should stand as a barrier for bilateral ties. “We are willing to engage with the interim government of Bangladesh,” he told reporters after his meeting with acting foreign secretary Riaz Hamidullah.
The Indian envoy described the relationship as “multifaceted and wide-ranging”, saying it could not be linked to one issue or agenda, and said India is interested in working with the Bangladesh government to fulfill the shared aspirations for peace, security and development.
Members of Islami Andolan Bangladesh shout slogans during a protest in Dhaka after a group of people in Agartala stormed a consulate office of Bangladesh. (AP Photo)
Verma also said there are many interdependencies and Delhi is keen to build on that for mutual benefits.
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Earlier in the day, terming the vandalism as India’s “failure”, Law Affairs Adviser in Bangladesh’s interim government, Asif Nazrul, asked India to reassess its neighbour afresh after the toppling of the Sheikh Hasina regime.
“We believe in a friendship based on equality and mutual respect. While Sheikh Hasina’s government followed a pro-India policy to cling to power without elections, India must realise that this is not Sheikh Hasina’s Bangladesh,” he wrote in a Facebook post.
Nazrul alleged that an outfit named the Hindu Sangharsh Samiti was responsible for “the disgraceful act”. He emphasised that Bangladesh is an independent, sovereign, and self-respecting nation driven by a “fearless and dynamic young generation.”
On Monday, the Bangladesh government had lodged a strong protest while the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had said the incident was “deeply regrettable”.
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Meanwhile, in a notice issued Tuesday afternoon, Bangladesh Assistant High Commission head and first secretary Md Al Amin said: “Given the security situation, all visa and consular services at the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission, Agartala, will remain suspended until further notice. This comes into effect immediately. This is for intimation of all the visa and consular service seekers”.
Security has been ramped up at the premises in Agartala, as well at the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi.
(With PTI inputs from Dhaka)
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