New Delhi, Feb 22 (UNI) External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said today that Bangladesh has to make up its mind on what kind of relationship it wants with India, even as he termed the continuing anti-India rhetoric by advisors of the Interim Government as “absolutely ridiculous”.
Answering a question on Bangladesh at the Delhi University Literature Fest, the EAM said:
“We obviously, with our neighbours, we wish them well. We have a long history with Bangladesh; it’s a very special history that goes back to 1971.
“Now things happened there last year, all of you are aware”, he said, referring to the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on August 5 and the installing of an army-backed Interim Government led by Mohammed Younus.
He cited two aspects of the Bangladesh situation as “what is very troubling” for India.
“One is the spate of attacks on the minorities in Bangladesh; and I think obviously it is something which impacts our thinking, and it is something we have to speak up about, which we have done.”
“The second, is they have their politics, you can agree, you can disagree, but at the end of the day we are a neighbour. They have to make up their mind what kind of relationship they want with us.
“Because every day if somebody in Bangladesh, who is in this Interim Government which they have made up for themselves, if they stand up and blame India for everything, and some of the things if you see the reports, are absolutely ridiculous.
“You can’t on the one hand say, ‘oh I would like to have a good relationship with you’, but I get up every morning and I blame you for everything that goes on. It is a decision that they have to make, about what kind of relationship they want with us,” the EAM said.
“We have sent a very clear signal-- you are a neighbour, we would like things to calm down, we would like the trade, the contacts, the other things; but obviously we would not like to see messaging and signalling which is continuously hostile in a way to India,” he added.
On Friday, the Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, answering a query on the anti-India comments by advisors in the Interim Government and what impact it will have on India’s dealings, said. “Yes, we obviously have taken note of such remarks which are of course not helpful. It is for the concerned individuals to reflect on implications for their particular domain.”
UNI RN