'Polls a constitutional requirement'

India on Monday said that elections in Bangladesh on Jan 5 were a constitutional requirement and democratic processes must be allowed to take their own course.

New Delhi correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 6 Jan 2014, 08:02 AM
Updated : 6 Jan 2014, 08:20 AM

“They (elections) are a part of the internal and constitutional process of Bangladesh. It is for the people of Bangladesh to decide their own future and choose their representatives in a manner that responds to their aspirations,” official spokesperson of the Indian Government’s Ministry of External Affairs, Syed Akbaruddin said.

“Violence cannot and should not determine the way forward. The democratic processes must be allowed to take their own course in Bangladesh,” he added.

Indian foreign secretary Sujatha Singh visited Dhaka in Dec and appealed to all parties to join the polls and resolve their differences through a dialogue.

India is closely watching the emerging situation in Bangladesh and is specially alarmed by the violence unleashed by Islamist radicals.

Delhi's relations with Dhaka have sharply improved during the last five years and Indian leaders specially appreciated the crackdown on northeast Indian insurgents who were using Bangladesh as sanctuary during previous regimes.