New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday told an all-party meeting that India has assured help to former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who arrived here on Monday evening, and given her time to decide the future course of action.
The Central government briefed leaders of all political parties on developments in Bangladesh following the dramatic collapse of the Sheikh Hasina government, with the Minister saying that all necessary steps will be taken if the situation in the neighbouring country deteriorates.
Jaishankar spoke on all possible impacts that developments in Bangladesh could have on India, and about New Delhi’s strategy if there was any interference from outside.
Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Health Minister JP Nadda and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju represented the government at the meeting, which was also attended by leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi.
Sources said Gandhi asked whether the government has information on the future plans of Hasina, who arrived at Hindon airbase near Ghaziabad in a Bangladesh Air Force aircraft on Monday afternoon, hours after she resigned and fled Bangladesh.
Gandhi asked about the government’s short-term strategy and expressed concern about possible infiltration. He also asked if any “foreign forces”, particularly China, were linked to the disturbance in Bangladesh, they said.
Jaishankar responded that the Indian side has spoken to Hasina on her future course of action, but it could not be disclosed at the moment, the sources said.
Uncertainty surrounded Hasina’s whereabouts on Tuesday, with reports suggesting that she had been moved from Hindon airbase, where she spent the night on Monday. There has been no official word from the government on the developments in Bangladesh or Hasina’s future plans.
Jaishankar also told the meeting that there is the possibility of formation of an interim government in Bangladesh, the people said. New Delhi is in touch with the Bangladesh Army and the Indian Army has been alerted and steps have been taken to ensure the safety and security of the country, the meeting was told.
Further, Jaishankar described the current situation at the India-Bangladesh border as “not alarming”.
Bangladesh Army chief General Waker-uz-Zaman and President Mohammed Shahabuddin both announced on Monday that an interim government would be formed to run the country but there is still no clarity on when this set-up will be created or who will head it. Hasina’s Awami League party was not among the political parties consulted by the army chief on Monday regarding the formation of a caretaker administration.
Another area of focus for the Indian side is ensuring the safety of some 20,000 Indians, including about 8,000 students, who were in Bangladesh when violent protests began last month. Most of the students have returned home, while about 12,000 Indians, including professionals, remain in Bangladesh, the people said.
The people quoted Jaishankar as saying that there were reports of minority communities being attacked in Bangladesh and their properties and assets being destroyed. He said appropriate steps will be taken to ensure the safety of minority communities, according to the people.
The people said the opposition parties indicated that they stand with the government in tackling the fallout of developments in Bangladesh.
Others who attended the all-party meeting were Congress leader KC Venugopal, TR Baalu of the DMK, Lallan Singh of the JD-U, Ram Gopal Yadav of the Samajwadi Party, Sudip Bandyopadhyay and Derek O’Brien of the Trinamool Congress, Misa Bharti of the RJD, Arvind Sawant of Shiv Sena (UBT), Sasmit Patra of the Biju Janata Dal, Supriya Sule of the NCP-SP, and Ram Mohan Naidu of the TDP.