India reaches out to Bangladesh opposition BNP, envoy meets party leader

After the first meeting between the BNP and Indian diplomats stationed in Dhaka, the party’s general secretary said, “India wants to bring a positive outlook to the relation with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party”

In a significant act of political outreach, the High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh, Pranay Verma, and his colleagues met Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, general secretary of the principal Opposition, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) in Dhaka. This is the first meeting between the BNP leadership and the Indian diplomats stationed in Bangladesh after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government on August 5, 2024.

“India wants to bring a positive outlook to the relation with the BNP. They are also seeking to strengthen BNP’s relation with political parties in India. They conveyed that they would like to firm up relations with Bangladesh, especially in the context of the big political change that has taken place here,” said Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, briefing the media after the meeting that took place at the BNP’s headquarters in the Gulshan neighbourhood of Dhaka. He shared that the two sides discussed the security situation.

The Indian envoy had met several members of the interim government earlier this month, indicating that India was interested in broadening dialogue with both the interim government and the political parties that are likely to play a prominent role when elections take place in Bangladesh.

During the meeting, Mr. Alamgir was accompanied by the BNP’s vice-chairman advocate Nitai Roy Choudhury, and the BNP’s international committee member Shama Obaid. High Commissioner Verma was accompanied by Deputy High Commissioner Pawan Badhe.

The BNP organised a political rally on September 17, 2024, when Mr. Alamgir and vice chairman Tareque Rahman, currently based in London, demanded a fresh election but assured that they wanted the interim government to succeed in carrying out the reforms it had promised while taking charge on August 7. In an interview with The Hindu in August, Mr. Alamgir expressed disappointment over the interim government not giving a timeline for returning Bangladesh to the democratic process.

On August 25, chief adviser Mohammad Yunus, in a speech, assured Bangladesh of reforms but did not reveal a timeline for holding elections. Mr. Yunus had suggested that the interim government would hold political dialogue with various parties in Bangladesh before proceeding for the election. Mr. Alamgir has said that “all political parties are demanding that”.

With the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government on August 5, BNP has emerged as the leading political player, and its cadre has made their presence felt across the country on multiple occasions. Former Prime Minister of Bangladesh Khaleda Zia, also the chair of the BNP, was released from jail a day after the fall of the Hasina government.

The BNP cadre came out in large numbers during the last Sri Krishna Janmashtami when they coordinated the festival in many places and provided security to the minority Hindu community.

BNP had been critical of some of the initiatives and agreements that the Hasina government had concluded with India. Mr. Alamgir had declared that his party would support the review of the energy agreement that the Hasina government had made with the Adani Group under which Bangladesh has been receiving electricity produced in Jharkhand’s Godda power plant. Apart from that, he had pointed out that the killings on the India-Bangladesh border should stop as it is leading to high casualties on the Bangladesh side. He has also sought the extradition of Ms. Hasina from India to Bangladesh.

Sunday’s meeting is being interpreted as a significant development as it marks the beginning of official-level Indian contact with BNP leadership. Mr. Alamgir had told The Hindu that the BNP had tried to reach out to India “on a number of occasions” before the controversial January 2024 election that they had boycotted but did not get any response from the Indian side. “India had placed all its eggs in one basket. Diplomatically, it was not a productive attitude. We always wanted friendly relations with India,” Mr. Alamgir had said.

Published - September 22, 2024 09:56 pm IST