Bangladesh interim government suspends two diplomats in India

Bangladesh's interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus ordered the dismissal of two diplomats serving in neighbouring India amid a simmering bilateral state of restiveness between the two countries since August 5 when the deposed former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina left the country and took refuge at a military base outside New Delhi.

Shaban Mahmud, serving as First Secretary (Press) at the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi was asked to resign before the end of his contract. Similarly, Ranjan Sen, serving in the same capacity at the Bangladeshi consulate in Kolkata, was also dismissed from his duties.

The interim government of Bangladesh was established amid a volatile political landscape that saw mass protests and violence directed against Sheikh Hasina and her ruling Awami League party.

On August 5, Hasina, aged 76, fled Bangladesh in a military helicopter to India as protesters overran the streets of Dhaka. Her 15-year rule came to a dramatic end. The weeks leading up to her ousting were bloody, with more than 450 dying during the unrest.

Despite Hasina's escape to India, Yunus has maintained that his government would continue to foster friendly relations with everyone.

"We will maintain friendly relations with all countries," he said in a televised address yesterday.

In his message to the international community earlier this month, Yunus called for continued support in rebuilding Bangladesh and transitioning to a fully functional democracy. He assured the diplomats that Bangladesh would maintain its role as a proponent of multilateralism, with the United Nations at the core of its foreign policy.

Meanwhile, Opposition leader Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has called for elections in the country.

Also watch |Bangladesh: Elections only after reforms in various sectors: Yunus

"People want to vote. There should be a dialogue between the political parties for the election," Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, secretary general of the party, said in an interview.

"People are willing to wait more than three months,” he said. "Probably, reasonable time should be given to the interim government, but not unreasonable time, like in the past — two or three years. I don’t think they will accept that."

(With inputs from agencies)