Dhaka warns Islamabad over video distorting history

Dhaka has lodged a strong protest and warned Islamabad against distorting history through misleading video-footage posted on the webpage maintained by the Pakistan High Commission in Dhaka.

Bangladesh foreign ministry summoned Pakistan High Commissioner and sought apology for the misleading video post on Declaration of Bangladesh’s Indepdence.

“The Pakistan High Commissioner has expressed sorrow for posting such video and deleted it from its website,” said Kamrul Ahsan, secretary of the foreign ministry, who summoned Pakistani envoy Rafiuzzaman Siddiqui at his office at 3:00pm.

Kamrul told reporters that Siddiqui said the video footage posted in the website was “unintentional”.

According to a foreign ministry press release, the government of Bangladesh has conveyed its strong protest against the misleading video-footage posted on the webpage maintained by the Pakistan High Commission in Dhaka. Secretary Bilateral (Europe, Africa & Americas) & Consular Kamrul Ahsan handed him the protest note, it said.

In the diplomatic note, it was stated that the message conveyed in the video that it is not the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman who declared the independence of Bangladesh is a blatant lie and sheer fabrication of historical facts.

The video also mentions that Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman did not want Bangladesh’s independence; he sought autonomy.  The Government of Bangladesh strongly rebuts such baseless and unfounded narratives.

Secretary Kamrul Ahsan said that this is an instance of purposeful abuse of social media by the High Commission of Pakistan in Dhaka.

Such breach of diplomatic norms and practices and  deliberate propaganda to spread shameless lies shall not only jeopardize bilateral relations, but would render a great disservice to succeeding generations of historians,  intelligentsia as well as common people who champion the cause of truth and justice, he said. 

Nothing can be farthest from the truth than claiming that the architect of independent Bangladesh and Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman did not want Bangladesh’s independence or that Bangladesh’s independence was declared by anybody other than the Great Leader himself. Any such misadventure from Pakistan or for that matter any quarters in Pakistan would threaten normal ties, the press release read.