New Delhi, Dec 17 (UNI) The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Wednesday summoned Bangladesh’s High Commissioner to India, Riaz Hamidullah, to lodge a diplomatic protest over recent threats to the Indian High Commission in Dhaka and inflammatory anti-India statements by Bangladeshi political leaders.
The MEA said India expects “the interim government to ensure the safety of Missions and Posts in Bangladesh in keeping with its diplomatic obligations.”
Conveying India’s strong concerns over the deteriorating security situation in Bangladesh, the High Commissioner was apprised of New Delhi’s serious apprehensions, particularly regarding the activities of certain extremist elements that have announced plans to create a security situation around the Indian Mission in Dhaka.
India firmly rejected what it described as a false narrative being propagated by extremist groups in connection with recent developments in Bangladesh.
“It is unfortunate that the interim government has neither conducted a thorough investigation nor shared meaningful evidence with India regarding the incidents,” the MEA said.
Reiterating the close and friendly ties between the peoples of India and Bangladesh—rooted in the 1971 Liberation War and reinforced through sustained developmental cooperation and people-to-people exchanges—India underlined its commitment to peace and stability in Bangladesh. New Delhi said it has consistently advocated free, fair, inclusive and credible elections conducted in a peaceful environment.
“It is unfortunate that the interim government has neither conducted a thorough investigation nor shared meaningful evidence with India regarding the incidents,” MEA said.
India also stressed that it expects the interim government in Bangladesh to ensure the safety and security of all diplomatic Missions and Posts in the country, in accordance with its international and diplomatic obligations.
The interim government, which took office after promising a short transition, has now been in power for over 15 months. Its rule has been marked by persistent violence, vigilante justice, and the re-emergence of Islamist groups previously contained through arrests and proscriptions.
Several leaders once jailed on terrorism-related charges have been released, and intelligence sources warn that they are now regrouping for another possible bout of violence and bomb attacks of the kind South Asia once experienced.
Elections are slated for February 2026, but their credibility may be doubtful. The Awami League, the country’s largest political force, has been barred from contesting.
Many of its leaders are imprisoned or in exile, largely in India.The Bangladesh Nationalist Party, which initially benefited from Hasina’s downfall, has seen its popularity erode amid allegations of widespread extortion by its cadres. Jamaat-e-Islami, long ostracised for its wartime role, is now positioned to be a major electoral player.
A voter boycott proposed by Sheikh Hasina in one of her many speeches remains a distinct possibility.
The interim leadership appears particularly wary of the Awami League’s enduring popularity among rural voters, women, and the poor.Against this backdrop, the summoning of India’s envoy takes on added significance.
By framing Sheikh Hasina and her supporters as the primary sources of unrest, and by implicitly implicating New Delhi, the new rulers of Dhaka appear to be constructing a political alibi, a fall-back option in case elections falter or be indefinitely postponed. UNI AAB
India summons Bangladesh High Commissioner over threats to Dhaka mission
