India-Bangladesh Relations After The Fall of Bangladesh's Iron Lady Sheikh Hasina
Sheikh Hasina has resigned as the PM of Bangladesh after being in office for almost 15 years continuously since 2009. Hasina was forced to leave the office after massive national protests over Bangladesh’s national reservation policy. In January, PM Sheikh Hasina retained power for the fourth time in the January 7 national polls with a voter turnout to be 40% only.
Bangladesh under Hasina remained a close geopolitical partner and she has also referred to India as a trusted friend. During India’s G20 Presidency Bangladesh participated as a guest country and was involved in various tracks at the ministerial level. Awami League is broadly considered a pro-Indian. While the former PM Khaleda Zia has openly criticized Hasina’s government for its positive ties with New Delhi.
Read also: Army Has Taken Over And Interim Govt To Be Formed: Bangladesh Army Chief
Bangladesh forged relations with India on the economic to counter-terrorism front. The two countries have worked on rail, road, and energy projects. Both have also shown cooperation over the contentious issue of sharing territories and water-sharing issues. In 2023, both countries inaugurated the India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline. Peaceful and cooperative management
mechanisms for the security of 4,096 kms long international border are
actively focused on border fencing, joint inspection of boundary pillars,
joint boundary demarcation, including of riverine boundaries, among
others.
India and Bangladesh have consistently stepped up cooperation in railways sector. Currently there are 3 railway trains operating between the two
countries including Maitri Express (since 2008, connecting Kolkata and Dhaka); Bandhan Express (since 2017, connecting Kolkata and Khulna); and Mitali Express (since June 2022, between New Jalpaiguri and
Dhaka).
Cooperation in power and energy sector is also one of the
important pillars of India- Bangladesh relations. Bangladesh is currently
importing 1160 MW of power from India.
Even during the 2024 protests, India reportedly pushed America to put little pressure on Hasina over democracy and human rights violations.
Whereas, the other major political party the Bangladesh Nationalist Party had troubled relations with India in the past as it refused to cooperate with militant groups like ULFA. BNP is said to have closer ties with China. Bangladesh’s presence in the region has also been crucial for India to counter the Chinese effect in the Indo-Pacific.
Read also: What Mamata Banerjee Said On Bangladesh Protests
As per the analysts, some of the notable industries including VIP, Dabur, Marico, Asian Paints, Tata Motors, and Hero MotoCorp have significant operations there. The unrest can impact the brand value of the manufacturing units.
Indian experts of the South Asia region gave reactions to the coup. Prof. Happymon Jacob, JNU, said via ‘X’, “A popular unrest that ends in a military coup is not a revolution (unless it paves the way for a democratically elected government)”.
A popular unrest that ends in a military coup is not a revolution (unless it paves the way for a democratically elected government).
— Happymon Jacob (@HappymonJacob) August 5, 2024
Another analyst, Stanly Johny calls the breaking up video of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman statu as ‘tragedy’.
What a tragedy! https://t.co/QXE0g64MZs
— Stanly Johny (@johnstanly) August 5, 2024
The relations between both the nations have progressed in the last three terms of former Bangladeshi PM and now the emerging situation will unfold the upcoming political system in the country. What turn the country’s politics see will decide the bilateral relations between India and Bangladesh.
