Amid winds of positive change, India, Bangladesh exchange 185 fishermen

Amid deteriorating India-Bangladesh ties, a positive development took place on Sunday, as both the nations undertook an exchange of 185 fishermen.

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The exchange of fishermen between the two sides took place on the international waters of the Bay of Bengal. The mutual exchange of fishermen was coordinated between Indian Coast Guard and Bangladesh Coast Guard, an official statement said.

“ICG Ship Varad and Amrit Kaur successfully repatriated 95 fishermen along with 04 Indian fishing boats while handing over 90 Bangladeshi fishermen including 12 rescued from sunken fishing boat ‘Kaushik’,” it said.

It added Indian fishermen had been handed over to West Bengal authorities at South 24 Parganas post repatriation from Bangladesh.

In October, six Indian fishing trawlers, carrying these 95 fishermen, crossed the international coastal borderline. They were later arrested by the Bangladeshi authorities.

Bangladeshi media has already termed it as “winds of positive change”. Prior to the exchange, there had been diplomatic exchanges, including the foreign secretary-level meeting between the two sides.

Sunday’s development came amid strained ties between India and Bangladesh, after the interim government headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus came to power in Dhaka last year.

India has been expressing concerns over attacks on minorities, especially in case of a Hindu monk Chinmoy Das, who was arrested by the interim government in a sedition case. New Delhi has been seeking a fair trial for Das as well as for all those detained following the ouster of the country’s former premier Sheikh Hasina, who has sought asylum in India. Das is the spokesperson for Bangladesh Sammilito Sanatan Jagran Jote and a former ISKCON leader.

New Delhi has been urging Dhaka to refrain taking vendetta against people who were considered close to past regimes.

The relations further worsened in December last year, after the interim government sent a diplomatic note to New Delhi seeking extradition of deposed PM Hasina.