E-Paper
Bangladesh formally objects to India over CM Mamata Banerjee’s remarks
Banerjee’s remarks about providing shelter in WB to people from Bangladesh in distress had not gone down well with the Centre or the Bangladeshi administration
New Delhi: India has received a formal diplomatic communication from the Bangladesh government objecting to West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s remarks about giving shelter to any Bangladeshi citizens fleeing the neighbouring country while it was rocked by violent protests.
Banerjee made the remarks last weekend as cities across Bangladesh were hit by protests against government job quotas that claimed more than 150 lives and injured hundreds more. The Central government had made it clear at the time that a state chief minister had no locus standi in such matters.
Bangladesh foreign minister Hasan Mahmud said on Wednesday that his ministry had sent a diplomatic note on the issue to the Indian side.
“I can confirm that we have received a diplomatic note from the Bangladeshi side protesting the comments made the chief minister of West Bengal. It is essentially on the lines that you may have seen in the [media] reports,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told a regular media briefing.
Jaiswal emphasised that according to the list of subject matters allocated to the Central government under the 7th Schedule of the Constitution, the “conduct of foreign affairs and all matters which bring the Union into relation with any foreign country are the sole prerogatives of the Union government”.
Giving an update on the status of Indian nationals in Bangladesh, Jaiswal said more than 6,700 Indian students had come back from the neighbouring country so far. The Indian side received “excellent cooperation” from the Bangladesh government for the repatriation of the students, and the Indian high commission in Dhaka had arranged their “safe and secure” travel to border crossing points and airports.
“Being a close neighbour with whom we share warm and friendly ties, we are hopeful that the situation in the country would return to normal soon,” he said.
Jaiswal reiterated that India considers the ongoing situation to be “an internal matter of Bangladesh”. The Indian side continues to closely follow the developments in Bangladesh, and the mission in Dhaka and four assistant high commissions will continue helping Indian citizens in need of any assistance.
Banerjee’s remarks on July 21 – about providing shelter in West Bengal to people from Bangladesh who are in distress – had not gone down well with the Central government or the Bangladeshi administration.
“I should not be speaking on the affairs of Bangladesh since it is a sovereign nation, and whatever needs to be said on the issue is a subject matter of the Centre. But I can tell you this, if helpless people come knocking on the doors of [West] Bengal, we will surely provide them shelter,” Banerjee had said at a rally in Kolkata.
Responding to Banerjee’s comments, Bangladesh foreign minister Mahmud said: “With due respect to chief minister Mamata Banerjee, I would like to say we have excellent relations with her...But her remarks created confusion to some extent, and there is scope [for people] to be misled.
