Sheikh Hasina poses a Bangladesh conundrum for India

Sheikh Hasina, the former prime minister of Bangladesh, rushed to land at a martial center close to Delhi after a turbulent exit. Fast a month later.

Ms Hasina’s dramatic ouster on 5 August followed weeks of student-led protests which spiralled into deadly, nationwide unrest. She was initially expected to stay in India for just a short period, but reports say her attempts to seek asylum in the UK, the US and the UAE have not been successful so far.

Delhi has had to work with the new time authorities in Dhaka to develop a strong relationship with her continued existence in India. &nbsp,

For India, Bangladesh is not just any adjacent country. It’s a strategic partner and a close ally essential to India’s borders safety, especially in the north-eastern state. &nbsp,

The two nations ‘ porous border is 4,096 kilometers ( 2,545 miles ) long, making it relatively simple for armed insurgent groups from India’s north-eastern states to enter Bangladesh for a safe haven. &nbsp,

After Ms Hasina’s Awami League party came to power in 2009, it cracked down on some of these ethnic militant groups. Ms Hasina also amicably settled several border disputes with India.  

While border protection is at the base of the marriage, there are financial features too. During Ms Hasina’s 15-year law, business connections and communication between the two nations flourished. &nbsp, India has gained street, river and station access via Bangladesh to transport items to its north-eastern state. &nbsp,

India has also provided more than$ 7 billion ( £5.3 billion ) as a line of credit to Bangladesh for infrastructure and development projects since 2010. &nbsp,

Delhi must work diligently to prevent these benefits from being lost as a result of Ms. Hasina’s unexpected departure. &nbsp,

” It’s a loss in the sense that any turmoil in our village is often undesired”, says Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty, &nbsp, a former Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka. &nbsp,

However, the former diplomat insists that Delhi will cooperate with the interim administration in Dhaka because “you ca n’t dictate what they do internally” and that” there is no choice.” &nbsp,

The Indian government has wasted no time in reaching out to the interim government in Dhaka, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi holding a telephone conversation with leader Muhammad Yunus.

Delhi will need to wait for it to quell Bangladesh’s outrage over its unwavering support of Ms. Hasina and her Awami League for the next 15 times. &nbsp, &nbsp,

Some Bangladeshis attribute Delhi’s sharp support of three contentious votes won by Ms. Hasina’s party to widespread voter rigging, according to allegations of widespread vote-rigging. &nbsp,

With the demise of Ms. Hasina, Bangladesh and Nepal’s “neighbourhood first” legislation have gotten a second chance in Delhi, as they joined the Maldives and Nepal in repressing any attempt at supremacy by India. &nbsp,

Delhi is seen as a regional powerhouse, especially as rival China is also vying for dominance in the region, according to analysts, who claim that if it wants to maintain its position as a regional powerhouse, it ca n’t afford to lose its influence in another neighboring nation. &nbsp,

Just last year, Mohamed Muizzu won the presidency in the Maldives on the back of his very public anti-India stand. 

According to Debapriya Bhattacharya, a senior analyst with the Dhaka Center for Policy Dialogue,” It’s time for India to take some time to think about its local policy.”

Delhi needs to assess whether it has taken the viewpoints of its local colleagues into account, he says.

” I am not only talking about Bangladesh ,]but also] almost all other countries in the region”, adds Mr Bhattacharya, who heads a committee appointed by the interim government to prepare a white paper on the state of Bangladesh’s economy.

For instance, analysts in the case of Bangladesh point out that successive Indian governments have failed to collaborate with other opposition parties, particularly the Bangladesh Nationalist Party ( BNP ). &nbsp,

” India apparently believed that Bangladesh’s Awami League and its administration are its only supporters. That was a tactical blunder”, says Abdul Moyeen Khan, a top leader of the BNP. &nbsp, &nbsp,

BNP officials are assured of winning if free and fair elections are held in Bangladesh in the upcoming months.

Delhi may face a political challenge as a result. There is a rumored trust gap between India and the BNP, which is led by Begum Khaleda Zia, who had previously served as prime minister for two conditions. &nbsp,

Ms. Zia, who has been in prison most of her life since 2018, has consistently denied corruption allegations against her and accuses Ms. Hasina of political vendetta. She has just been released from jail and is recovering from her condition. &nbsp, &nbsp,

Delhi and the BNP officials will have to work through their disagreements in the coming weeks.

The diplomatic partnership between Delhi and the earlier BNP-led coalition government between 2001 and 2006 deteriorated, with Delhi accusing Dhaka of house militants from India’s north-east.

During Ms Zia’s rule, Hindu leaders in Bangladesh said there were a series of attacks against them – including murder, looting and rape – by Islamist parties and the BNP which began as the election results were announced in 2001. 

The BNP refutes the accusations of sheltering anti-Indian militants and carrying out attacks on majority Hindus in 2001.

BNP leaders, including Mr Khan, say India has n’t been forthcoming in engaging with them, adding that” now it’s time for a policy shift in Delhi”. &nbsp, &nbsp,

He also stresses that given India’s contact, size and its growing economic and military might, his party does not make the mistake of harbouring any anti-Indian rebels.

Various elements are also at play in the anger against India. The posting of liquid resources between India and Bangladesh is a controversial issue because they both have 54 river.

The recent floods that southeast Bangladesh experienced were the result of heavy rains, an illustration of how misinformation can lead to conflict between the two nations. &nbsp,

The Indian state of Tripura experienced a rapid, big storm that flooded the Gumti valley, which flows between the two nations, inundating both river in neighboring Bangladesh and in the state. &nbsp, &nbsp,

Millions of people were affected with some losing their homes, possessions and land. Numerous locals and users of social media sites accused India of purposefully causing the floods by releasing water from a bridge at night. &nbsp,

The Indian external affairs ministry was forced to issue a statement denying this, explaining that the floods had been caused by heavy rains in the catchment areas of the Gumti river. 

Then there is another element- China. Beijing wants to expand its presence in Bangladesh as it fights for local power against India. &nbsp,

After winning the Maldives&nbsp poll, Mr. Muizzu’s decision to make his second state visit to China greeted the red carpet.

Delhi would want to prevent the same fate with Bangladesh. And it hopes that Bangladesh’s reliance on American goods and trade did give it time to refine its political plan and improve its reputation. &nbsp,

In addition to the new government’s proper request, Delhi will have to consider Ms. Hasina’s existence in India.

A statement issued on her behalf by her son Sajeeb Wazed Joy last month had already stoked anger in Bangladesh. 

India would n’t want to ask Ms. Hasina to leave because her future is uncertain and would appear to leave a formidable former ally in the dark. &nbsp,

” It does n’t matter how she is accorded hospitality in India. However, it is important for Bangladeshis to know how she interferes in domestic concerns it. If she speaks against the latest time government, that would be considered as an act of hostility”, Mr Bhattacharya warned. &nbsp, &nbsp,

Delhi officials will expect that Ms. Hasina chooses to pursue her own interests without imposing India’s will on her.