Dhaka urges Delhi to prevent Hasina from making political statements

Bangladesh has expressed strong dissatisfaction over ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina's frequent political statements from India and urged the neighbouring country's government to prevent such actions, said a foreign ministry spokesperson today (14 November).

"Since fleeing the country on 5 August, the former prime minister has been residing in India and has been issuing political statements continuously from there. We have conveyed our government's discontent over the issue to the Indian high commissioner (in Dhaka)," said Toufique Hasan, director general of Public Diplomacy Wing, at a weekly briefing at the ministry in Dhaka.

The Indian high commissioner has assured of relaying the message to his government, BSS reports, citing Hasan.

When asked about the process of bringing back Hasina from India in relation to the International Crimes Tribunal, Hasan said the foreign ministry has not yet received any request from the relevant ministry.

"If we receive any directive from the ministry concerned, we will take necessary steps," he added.

The director general also described the "campaign" against some of Bangladesh envoys abroad and those who are going to be posted afresh as "very unfortunate".

"It's truly very unfortunate, because an ambassador/high commissioner goes to the highest level with a long experience of 20-25 years. If he or she does not have enough experience, then the government does not appoint him/her," said Hasan.

On the issue of processing Indian visas for Bangladeshis, Hasan mentioned that the government has communicated with the Indian authorities on the matter and they said they halted processing of visas of some categories due to manpower shortage.

The foreign ministry is working to ensure that Bangladeshi students, who now need to travel to India to obtain third-country visas, can acquire their visas from alternative locations such as Vietnam, Indonesia, or Pakistan, Hasan added.

He urged journalists to verify facts before publishing any report.

On behalf of the ministry, he requested all to publish reports after being sure about facts. "Don't do anything that projects a negative image of Bangladesh."

Hasan said the government has decided not to extend the service tenure of the envoys after their retirement.

Around seven to eight ambassadors are scheduled to complete their assignments, and as part of ongoing reforms, they will not get extensions, he said.