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Published : 14 Nov 2024, 10:19 PM
Foreign ministry spokesperson Toufique Hasan has said the interim government is not pleased with the comments made by former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who has been residing in India since Aug 5.
On Thursday, at a media briefing at the ministry, Toufique told reporters: “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has informed the Indian high commissioner in Bangladesh, and the Indian government on several occasions [about it].”
“They have been explicitly told that Bangladesh’s government is not taking kindly to the political statements and speeches that the former prime minister has been making consistently in the media after she left for India following the Aug 5 uprising.”
“In addition to expressing the government’s displeasure about the matter, the Indian government has been called upon to prevent the former prime minister from making such statements,” he added.
“At the same time, it was said that it is very important to prevent her from making such statements to maintain the historical relationship and mutual respect between our countries.”
Hasina, who served as Bangladesh’s prime minister for over 15 years, left for India on Aug 5 following a period of intense political upheaval in Dhaka, and other parts of the country, spurred by public unrest and a rapidly growing movement for quota reform.
According to media reports, she took a helicopter from the Ganabhaban to the airport, where she boarded a military plane that took her to India’s Agartala. From there, she was taken to Hindon Airport in Ghaziabad. She was accompanied by her younger sister Sheikh Rehana.
The former head of government has been staying in India for the past three months since her resignation.
Meanwhile, some statements have been published under her name on the official Facebook page of the Awami League, despite her not giving any statement to the media directly.
Furthermore, recordings of Hasina’s phone calls to various political leaders – both within Bangladesh and abroad – have been circulating in the media for the past few months. However, the exact authenticity of these calls still remains unverified.
When asked whether India had responded to the interim government’s displeasure regarding Hasina’s statements, Touqfiue said: “When we raised the issue to the Indian ambassador, he said that he would convey the matter to his government. We haven’t really received an official response. They said they will look into the matter.”
Responding to questions related to getting Indian visas, he said: “We have been repeatedly telling the Indian authorities. They have informed us about their manpower crisis.”
“We have asked them to expedite the issue of health visas, and those seeking visas to visit third world countries. We have also asked them to make the process easier for students seeking visas for Romania, Bulgaria and Finland.”
