Former Indian high commissioners call for engagement between Bangladesh, India
Amid strained ties between the two countries since the fall of the Awami League government, two former Indian high commissioners to Bangladesh have spoken in favour of engagement between the Bangladesh interim government and India.
In separate interviews with The Daily Star over the weekend, Deb Mukharji and Veena Sikri addressed various issues, including the question of the extradition of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who has been in India since the fall of her Awami League government on August 5.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Mukharji, who was the high commissioner from April 1995 to July 2000, did not think the constitutional legitimacy of the interim government should come in the way of talks.
"As a matter of almost universal practice, governments do not deal with each other on the basis of their supposed legitimacy, which can be a subjective judgement. India itself deals with military governments who have subverted constitutions.
"There can certainly be engagement between the interim government of Bangladesh and the government of India. As neighbours with common issues and interests, we cannot remain aloof from each other regardless of the kind of government either may have … High commissioners in both countries are expected to fulfil this purpose. I do not rule out engagement at the political level if the opportunity and the need should arise."
Sikri, who served as high commissioner from December 2003 to November 2006, said the ball was now in Bangladesh's court as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had in his message to Yunus on August 8, after the latter was sworn in as chief adviser, conveyed India's desire to work with the interim government in Bangladesh.
When asked about it, she also criticised what has been termed in India as Bangladesh's "megaphone diplomacy".
"PM Modi expressed the hope for an early return to normalcy, ensuring the safety and protection of Hindus and all other minority communities.
"Now it is up to the interim government to respond either through diplomatic channels or formal bilateral talks, based on specific proposals and suggestions. In Dhaka, Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma has initiated this process by calling on the chief adviser, on the foreign affairs adviser and several others … "megaphone diplomacy", unilaterally releasing statements through the media, does not help at all."
Unlike Mukharji, she believed that the legitimacy of the interim government was an issue.
Mentioning that the issue is uppermost in the minds of all those who are observing the events unfolding in Bangladesh, Sikri said, "The concept of interim government finds no mention anywhere in the present constitution of Bangladesh. Even when the concept of caretaker government was included in the Bangladesh constitution, this was a very specific time-bound concept, for the sole purpose of organising free and fair elections within 90 days."
Asked about the reforms planned by the Yunus-led interim government, Sikri said policy decisions and reforms are the responsibility of an elected government. "Otherwise, the interim government can be said to be taking decisions and actions in an arbitrary, non-democratic manner, which is exactly what former prime minister Sheikh Hasina's government is being accused of. Constitutional legitimacy is vital."
Mukharji was concerned about the law and order situation in Bangladesh and the lack of a clear roadmap from the current government. "As a foreigner it would not be correct for me to comment on the legitimacy of the present government in Bangladesh. What I do understand from media reports is that there is no clear understanding yet as to the roadmap for the future and some law and order issues.
Asked whether vigilante politics had taken hold, he said, "I do not know if it is a matter of politics, but some odd decisions seem to point in this direction. The provost of an institution expelling all girl students associated with the former ruling party would seem to be a case in point. I am personally pained at the arrest without bail of a well-known freedom fighter. I would not like to comment further."
After being ousted by a mass uprising and fleeing to India, there have been nearly 200 cases filed against Hasina, a majority of them in connection with deaths centring the violence in the month preceding her ouster.
There has been talk about extraditing Bangladesh's longest-serving prime minister.
"There is an extradition treaty between Bangladesh and India. I do not believe that any request has been received as yet from the Bangladesh government for Sheikh Hasina's extradition. My understanding from dealing with extradition cases in the past is that the individual concerned has the right to seek judicial review in the host country. But the final decision is political," Mukharji said.
Sikri said that as of now, this was just a hypothetical question.
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