New Delhi: Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi has doubled down on his party’s criticism of India, condemning New Delhi for its alleged interference in Bangladesh’s internal affairs and for sheltering ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina.
Rizvi’s comments, made at a rally ahead of a long march by BNP affiliates that began from the party’s Dhaka headquarters Wednesday, came despite recent efforts to ease diplomatic tensions, including Indian foreign secretary Vikram Misri’s visit to Dhaka.
Days after he publicly burnt his wife’s Indian saree and an Indian bedsheet to mark his protest, Rizvi at the rally declared that Bangladesh will not “surrender its independence” to India. He also accused India of supporting Sheikh Hasina for its own gains. “We earned our independence with blood—are we to sell that independence? We snatched freedom from Pindi; will we now surrender it to Delhi? We do not possess such blood,” he said.
Led by former prime minister Khaleda Zia, Hasina’s long-term arch rival, the BNP was last in power between 2001 and 2006 in alliance with the hardline Jamaat-e-Islami party. It emerged as the leading opposition force in the country after the fall of Hasina’s government. With the next national election looming, the BNP is positioning itself as a strong contender for power.
The BNP’s stance on India has become a focal point in the country’s increasingly tense political climate, especially after Hasina fled Bangladesh in August amid widespread unrest following a student uprising. Since then, the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus has been navigating a delicate political balance, with many smaller Islamist groups and the BNP urging the government to confront India over its perceived role in Bangladesh’s internal strife.
While India has maintained close ties with Hasina’s Awami League over the years, the BNP has accused India of meddling in Bangladesh’s political affairs.
The BNP march comes close on the heels of protests in Delhi by affiliates of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), which condemned alleged atrocities against Bangladeshi Hindus, especially the arrest of former ISKCON monk Chinmoy Krishna Das, which led to a diplomatic chill between the two countries.
In his speech Wednesday, Rizvi criticised India’s “political influence” in Bangladesh, particularly its support for Hasina, who has long been viewed by India as a trusted ally in the region. “India has supported a bloodthirsty Lady Fir’aun (Pharaoh) for 16 years to keep her in power,” Rizvi said, referring to Hasina. “Yet India claims to be a democratic country!”
Meanwhile, BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman stated Tuesday that if his party comes to power, it will establish a government accountable to the people. Speaking at a virtual workshop in Cumilla, he emphasised that such a government would address the country’s issues in phases. The workshop aimed to rally public support for the BNP’s 31-point state structure reform agenda, local media reported.
“Our hope and desire is to form a government that is accountable to the people of the country. The government would be obliged to be accountable to the people. If so, then we will be able to solve all the problems of the country in phases,” Rahman said.
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The BNP’s vocal criticism of India has intensified in recent weeks, with protests erupting in Dhaka and other cities. Last week, thousands of BNP supporters marched towards the Indian High Commission in Dhaka to protest alleged attacks on Bangladeshis in Tripura, as well as what they see as India’s interference in the country’s sovereignty. After a standoff with police, a delegation from the BNP handed over a letter to the Indian High Commission.
In his speech Wednesday, Rizvi emphasised that India does not want Bangladesh, or other neighbouring countries like Bhutan, Nepal, and the Maldives, to pursue their own political paths. “India wants them to follow Delhi’s words,” he said.
Rizvi also warned of escalating tensions if India continued to overstep its bounds. “If India demands Chattogram as their part, then Bangladesh will demand Bengal, Bihar, and Odisha as its part,” he said, adding, “We won’t chew amla (Indian gooseberry) if they come to occupy Chattogram.”
In September this year, India’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Pranay Verma, and his team had met with Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir,general secretary of the BNP in Dhaka. This marked the first meeting between BNP leaders and Indian diplomats since Hasina’s ouster in August.
“India wants to bring a positive outlook to the relationship 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,” Mirza had said at the time.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)
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