Home and Abroad: The Coup and Implications in Bangladesh

Dr. Jai Narayan Vyas Rat and the relations with the neighboring countries have recently undergone many big and not very pleasant changes. Nepal, China, Bangladesh, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Pakistan are all facing a situation where we do not have very warm relations somewhere. When Narendra Modi was taking oath as the Prime Minister for the third time, Sheikh Hasina also attended as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. Within days of their return to their country, there was a rebellion against them and they fled to India. Some Bangladeshis decry this as India harboring its enemy, but the bottom line is that our intelligence agencies and foreign affairs have been caught sleeping in all this. The issues of Bangladeshi refugees are not fully resolved yet, but the recent incident is enough to wake up India. A phenomenon known as 'Stockholm Syndrome' happened in Bangladesh. The National Press Club of Dhaka celebrated the 76th death anniversary of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, considered the creator of Pakistan. Proponents of this celebration argue that Bangladesh broke free from Pakistani oppression in 1971 and became a separate country, but this was because Jinnah also created the region of East Pakistan along with the creation of Pakistan. Had this not happened, their situation would have been like that of Kashmir where the barrel of the army's guns were pointed at them and they would have to live in an oppressive system. Alternatively, they would have become a part of the Indian state known as West Bengal and would have had to live there under anarchy and severe fire-like conditions and social and ethnic tensions in the northeastern states! Thus, Jinnah was the creator of Pakistan but what would have been its status in India if today's Bangladesh had not become a part of Pakistan in 1947 is anyone's guess. When today's Bangladesh was struggling to separate from Pakistan, Pakistan deployed a large-scale army there and unleashed a chain of repression. The East Pakistan of that time had to endure the same treatment as Step Mana. The local economy almost collapsed. People were living life in great difficulty and the rulers sitting in West Pakistan could not hear anything. Finally, on March 26, 1971, East Pakistan declared its status as an independent country under the leadership of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Pakistan then sent more military personnel to make the scourge of repression even more painful, intensifying the demand for a separate state. However, East Pakistan would never have become independent on its own strength. The questions and concerns raised by the increasing number of Bangladeshi refugees arriving in India made it almost mandatory for India to support the demand for the creation of Bangladesh as a separate country under the leadership of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. The 'Mukti Vahini' was supported by New Delhi and its soldiers were also supplied with arms and ammunition. The event, held on the occasion of Jinnah's 76th death anniversary, shows that some of the current citizens of Bangladesh have forgotten their feelings for India, not only that, but they do not hesitate to talk about pro-China and Pakistan attitudes. What effect does this have in India? Once upon a time, India was considered a very prestigious country in South Asia. Challenges have arisen against that situation. Matters like Jinnah's death anniversary also raise questions about the effectiveness of the Indian foreign policy apparatus as well as the intelligence apparatus. The existence of yet another group in Bangladesh which is not so favorable to India is a matter of concern. The relationship between the two nations in South Asia emphasizes the ability to carefully handle complex subjects such as history, politics and understanding based on cultural sentiments, a major responsibility of which is the effectiveness of intelligence as well as the urgent need for awareness and sensitivity of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on all such issues. China has entered the economy of Bangladesh. Perhaps it is for this reason that the US wants to establish its base on an island in Bangladesh, so that the US can more effectively monitor the commercial as well as military and espionage movements in the Indo-Pacific Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea. China had interest in Bangladesh but now America has fallen in it. In view of all this, a cautious foreign policy for India in India-Bangladesh relations and a foreign policy that protects its interests and a highly efficient intelligence system, a sensitive foreign ministry, and the performance of the military, including all these institutions, will be equally important. In particular, many of our bordering states in the North-East have severe fire-like conditions. Manipur is still raging and there doesn't seem to be much effort being made to quell the feud between Maiiti and Kuki. Even though the ruling party's MP Tapir Gao said in the Parliament that China has infiltrated on a large scale in Arunachal Pradesh, even if the Indian government keeps repeating that 'there is nothing like this', it can be assumed that there is a possibility of creating a situation that will cause serious problems in the future. }

Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).