New Delhi, February 8 (Indian Express): Expressing concern over statements portraying India “negatively”, the Ministry of External Affairs Friday summoned Bangladesh Acting High Commissioner and conveyed that the comments attributed to ousted PM Sheikh Hasina, which led to violence in Dhaka, had been made in “her individual capacity” and Delhi had “no role to play” in it.
According to MEA official spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, the Bangladesh envoy, Md. Nural Islam, was told that conflating Hasina’s comments with Government of India’s position was not going to help add positivity to bilateral relations.
“It was conveyed that India desires a positive, constructive and mutually beneficial relationship with Bangladesh… It is, however, regrettable that regular statements made by Bangladesh authorities continue to portray India negatively, holding us responsible for internal governance issues. These statements by Bangladesh are in fact responsible for the persistent negativity,” Jaiswal said.
The move came a day after Dhaka lodged a protest with India’s acting envoy and asked New Delhi to stop Hasina from making “ making “false and fabricated comments”. Dhaka termed the comments by the former PM, who is in India, as a “hostile act”.
In an online address Wednesday, she called on her supporters to stand up against the interim government, accusing it of seizing power in an unconstitutional manner. This led to violence on in Dhaka Thursday, with a mob torching the residence of her father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding leader of Bangladesh. India had earlier condemned the violence as an “act of vandalism”.
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First Border Talks After Hasina’s Exit
First India-Bangladesh border talks after Hasina govt fall: Physical fencing, insurgency and smuggling on top agenda
More than 850 km of the India-Bangladesh border is yet to be fenced. The BSF is likely to raise this issue at the meeting with Border Guard Bangladesh officials.
By Mahender Singh Manral
New Delhi, February 8: Physical fencing along the border, curbing smuggling and trans-border crimes, assault on BSF personnel, and insurgent camps – these issues will top the agenda of the biannual talks between the border guarding forces of India and Bangladesh in Delhi later this month.
The meeting between Border Security Force (BSF) and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) personnel will take place between February 17-20, the first official meeting in Delhi since the fall of former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government on August 5.
A source in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said the BSF has readied all the arrangements for the meeting after coordinating with the home ministry. “The conference is being organised to discuss border-related issues and for better coordination between both border guarding forces. In the meeting, the BSF is going to discuss one of the key points of physical fencing in an area of around 864.482 km area, which is yet to be fenced,” the source said.
Earlier this week, Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai informed the Lok Sabha that the total length of India-Bangladesh border is 4096.7 km, out of which, 3196.705 km has been covered by physical fencing. “A length of 864.482 km of the India-Bangladesh border is yet to be fenced which includes a length of 174.514 km of non-feasible gap. The challenges faced in completing the feasible stretches of fencing projects relate to land acquisition, BGB objections, limited working season and landslide/marshy land,” Rai said in a written reply.
According to the source, last year, the BSF registered 85 protest notes with the BGB. “Since the formation of a new government in Bangladesh, many security personnel from border area security have been replaced or transferred. After taking charge, they are taking time to settle down to have cordial relations with the BSF,” the source said. “Earlier, the officer in charge of BGB used to make final decisions on trivial issues, but nowadays, they are involving their higher-ups in any decision-related issue,” the source added.
The talks were held annually between 1975 and 1992. In 1993, they were made bi-annual with either side alternately travelling to the national capitals of New Delhi and Dhaka.
Sharing details of the tentative agendas, the source said that joint efforts for effective implementation of the Coordinated Border Management Plan (CBMP) and Confidence Building Measures (CBMs), injuries to the BSF personnel by the miscreants during border duty, and insurgent camps on Bangladesh soil will be discussed.
Data prepared by the Centre for the biannual talks shows that the BSF has seized 190.830 kg of gold in 2024 as compared to 171.045 kg in 2023. “Rs 33,35,700 in fake Indian currency notes (FICN) as compared to 20,18500 FICN in 2023. BSF has caught 3,474 Bangladeshi nationals in 2024 as compared to 3,342 in 2023. Sixty-nine BSF personnel got injured in 2024 and 74 in 2023,” the source added.
The Indian side of the India- Bangladesh border (IBB) touches West Bengal (2216.7 km), Assam (263 km), Meghalaya (443 km), Tripura (856 km) and Mizoram (318 km). The entire stretch consists of plains, riverine belts, hills and jungles. The area is heavily populated and is cultivated right up to the border.
Border Out Posts (BOPs) are the main workstation of the BSF along the borders. Inter-alia, the BOPs are meant to provide an appropriate show of force to deter trans-border criminals, infiltrators and other hostile elements from indulging in intrusion or encroachment and border violations. “Currently, there are 1,113 BOPs of BSF along the IBB. The Centre has approved construction of 383 composite BOPs along the IBB, which are yet to be constructed,” an MHA official said.
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