'Remarks Endanger Democratic Transition': Bangladesh Protests Against India For Allowing Sheikh Hasina To Address Public Event

New Delhi: After former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina delivered a pre-recorded audio message at a public event in New Delhi, in which she called for the removal of the Mohammad Yunus-led Interim government, Dhaka said in a statement that it "clearly endangers Bangladesh's democratic transition and peace and security".

"Bangladesh is deeply aggrieved that while India is yet to act on her obligations to hand Sheikh Hasina over to Bangladesh under the bilateral extradition agreement despite repeated requests by the Bangladesh Government, she has instead been allowed to make such inciteful pronouncements from its own soil," the statement issued by the Foreign Ministry read, stressing that it endangers Bangladesh's democratic transition and peace and security.

The statement read that the Bangladesh government is surprised and shocked that “fugitive Sheikh Hasina”, who has been convicted by the International Crimes Tribunal for committing crimes against humanity, was allowed to make a statement at a public event in New Delhi on January 23 in which she openly called for the removal of the Government of Bangladesh and issued blatant incitements to her party loyalists and general public to carry out acts of terror in order to derail the upcoming general elections in Bangladesh.

The Bangladesh Foreign Ministry said that allowing Hasina to speak in Delhi and deliver her "hate speech" was not in accordance to the norms of inter-state relations, respect for sovereignty, non-interference and good neighbourliness. India's action was also suggestive of a clear affront to the government in Bangladesh, the statement added.

"It sets a dangerous precedent vis-a-vis the future of Bangladesh-India relations and may seriously impair the ability of the future elected polity in Bangladesh to engage, shape and nurture mutually beneficial bilateral relations," the statement read.

"The unabashed incitements by Awami League's leadership yet again demonstrated why the Interim Government had to ban its activities. Bangladesh would hold this outfit responsible for committing incidents of violence and terror in the run up to the elections and on the election day, and will take appropriate actions to foil its evil conspiracies," it added.

On January 23, blasting the Interim Government's Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus, Hasina has said that the country "has plunged into an age of terror" and "there is a treacherous plot to barter away the territory and resources of Bangladesh to foreign interests". She also called on people of the country to "overthrow Yunus regime".

The explosive statements come as Bangladesh is slated to go for national elections on February 12, the first after the ouster of the Hasina government. Sheikh Hasina's party Awami League have been banned from participating in the upcoming polls.

"Bangladesh stands today at the edge of an abyss, a nation battered and bleeding, navigating one of the most perilous chapters in its history. The homeland won through the supreme Liberation War under the leadership of the Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, is now ravaged by the monstrous onslaught of extremist communal forces and foreign perpetrators. Our once serene and fertile land has been reduced to a wounded, blood-soaked landscape. In truth, the entire country has become a vast prison, an execution ground, a valley of death," she had said.

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