Govt refutes Yunus’ ‘India destabilisng Bangladesh’ claim

Calling it an attempt to deflect attention from real issues, India on Thursday refuted Bangladesh's interim government head Muhammad Yunus’ claim that New Delhi is “destabilisng” his country.

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Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said: "As far as the government there is concerned, the responsibility for law and order and governance issues lies entirely with that government. In such a situation, if someone says that external factors or someone else is to blame for the disturbances, it appears that they are trying to deflect attention from real issues and shift the blame on to others. Such statements do not solve the problem; they seem like an attempt to avoid accountability," he added.

This comes days after Yunus hinted that India may be behind efforts to “destabilise” Bangladesh. His press secretary quoted him as saying that there were “relentless efforts to destabilise Bangladesh,”both “internally and externally,” thereby leading to a “war-like situation.”

Yunus reportedly told Mahmudur Rahman Manna, the leader of the Bangladeshi political party Nagorik Oikya, that Bangladesh was now in a major crisis due to Indian hegemony.

“The chief adviser stated that the country is in a major crisis due to Indian hegemony…he started the discussion by saying that we are in a deep crisis. By crisis, he meant a conspiracy by India. He said India does not want to accept this change in our country at all. If they could, they would destroy us in a single day, and they are doing everything necessary to that end. That’s what he said… He believes the entire nation needs to remain united in response,” Manna said.

Jaiswal also said, "Bangladesh needs to ascertain the will and mandate of the people by holding an inclusive, free, and fair election at an early date."