6

Aug

Bangladesh Coup : A few lessons for Modi Govt.

image

Prof Pradeep Mathur

A person with white hair and glasses Description automatically generated

New Delhi | Tuesday | 6 August 2024

The developments in Bangladesh have serious implications for India. In the political upheavals there heading to the ouster from power of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, we have lost a good and sincere friend. But then we have also lost the goodwill of the masses of a friendly country. The worst aspects of these developments are strong anti-India feelings leading to the mob attack on the Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre in Dhaka and the attack on Hindu temples at many places in the country. There is also the danger of a heated campaign and violence against nearly 10 per cent Hindu minority in the country of over 17 crore people.

The situation is so bad that the agitators have vandalised the statute of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, the architect of independent Bangladesh and father of deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. As we know Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, broke Pakistan with the help of the Indian Army to carve out an independent country of Bangladesh 53 years ago.

Therefore, Monday’s coup is not only against Sheikh Hasina and her Awani party leaders but also against the close Indo-Bangladesh ties to build which India has sacrificed a lot.

Though the Modi Government is downplaying the Bangladesh developments as an internal matter of another country, the situation is not so simple.  If the new government in power in Dhaka headed by the Army Chief does not control the situation in time  the mob attacks on Indian establishments and Hindu temples will have counter-reaction in India where, thanks to the BJP’s polarization politics, the communal tensions are already fairly high.

 

Article at a Glance
 
The recent developments in Bangladesh have significant implications for India, with the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the rise of a new government. While India has lost a friendly leader, it has also lost the goodwill of the Bangladeshi people. The situation has taken a disturbing turn, with attacks on the Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre and Hindu temples, and a heated campaign against the country's Hindu minority.
 
The Modi government's downplaying of the situation as an internal matter is simplistic, as the new government in Dhaka may struggle to control the situation. The attacks on Indian establishments and Hindu temples could have a counter-reaction in India, where communal tensions are already high.
 
The Indian government must acknowledge the failure of its polarization politics and adopt a more tolerant and inclusive approach. The decline of Sheikh Hasina was hastened by India's overt support, which gave Islamic fundamentalists in Bangladesh an opportunity to broaden their support base. The shift in power in Bangladesh will increase India's headaches on international borders, and the country must be prepared to do more to maintain a strict vigil on its border.
 
Ultimately, the Modi government must learn from the events in Bangladesh that a government must carry all segments of society with it and not ignore public dissent and mass movements. The use of force can never crush a popular movement, and India must adopt a more nuanced approach to its relationships with neighboring countries.

 

The time has come when the Modi government must admit the failure of its polarization politics and adopt an approach of tolerance and accommodation if not secular ethos. It must realise that communal politics is always counter-productive. Then in this internet-driven globalised world what you do in your country is instantly known the world over.

Though our bureaucrat-turned-politician external affairs Minister will hate to admit it, the decline of Sheikh Hasina has been hastened by our overt show of support for her. The support of a government with known anti-Muslim credentials gave the Islamic fundamentalists in Bangladesh politics an opportunity to broaden their support base among the Muslim masses in their country. Pakistan’s intelligence set-up ISI has always been looking for opportunities to work against pro-India elements in Bangladesh as they have not forgotten the humiliating defeat the Pakistan Army suffered at the hands of India in 1971. Therefore, to complain that the ISI was working against a pro-India Sheikh Hasina is childish, to say the least. To say that the Chinese too had a hand in weakening Sheikh Hasina’s position is nonsense.

The shift of power in Bangladesh is sure to increase our headaches on international borders. Whoever comes to power in Dhaka will not be too friendly with us. The economic cooperation between the two countries may decline and we will have to do a lot more to keep a strict vigil on our more than 4000-km long border with Bangladesh.

Notwithstanding its claim that India has become the Vishwa Guru, the Modi government has one or two lessons to learn from what has happened in Bangladesh. The first one is that a government must carry all groups and all segments of society with itself. It cannot afford to practice segregation or favouritism based on class, caste or creed. The other and equally important is that it should not ignore public dissent and mass movements even though they may not appear to be big in dimension at the start. And with this goes the most important lesson that howsoever mighty the force a ruler may be having under his command it can never crush a popular movement of agitated masses.

---------------

 

  • Share:

About Us

We must explain to you how all seds this mistakens idea off denouncing pleasures and praising pain was born and I will give you a completed accounts..

Contact Us

Contact Info

  • 70, Gyan Khand- 4, Indirapuram, Ghaziabad. Uttar Pradesh.
  • +91-9810533682
  • info@mediamap.co.in
  • Week Days: 09.00 to 18.00 Sunday: Closed