Bangladesh has rejected Chinese vaccine. It is finally distancing itself from Beijing. Palki Sharma Upadhyay asks - Can India seize the moment? Perhaps, start with settling the Teesta water dispute?

Gravitas: Teesta water dispute: Time to settle it?

<p>A Bangladeshi opposition leader was sentenced to three years in prison for allegedly giving death threats to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at an event last year.</p>

<p>A Chittagong court awarded in absentia the prison sentence to Giasuddin Quader Chowdhury, the vice-chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).</p>

<p>The court also slapped a fine of 5,000 Bangladeshi takas on the BNP leader with an additional three-month prison term for failure to pay the fine, Additional Public Prosecutor Sameer Das Gupta was quoted by bdnews24 as saying.</p>

<p>On May 29 last year, Chowdhury had allegedly said at a function that Hasina's fate would turn out to be "worse" than that of her father and country's founder Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who was assassinated in 1975.</p>

<p>The next day, ruling Awami League general secretary of Fatikchhari unit, Nazimuddin Muhuri, had filed a case in the court against the BNP leader for his alleged comments, court sources told The Dhaka Tribune.</p>

<p>The court had issued an arrest warrant against Chowdhury on May 31 of that year.</p>

<p>Chowdhury is the younger brother of Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, who was executed in 2015 in connection with his role in war crimes committed in 1971 during the Liberation War.</p>


A Bangladeshi opposition leader was sentenced to three years in prison for allegedly giving death threats to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at an event last year. A Chittagong court awarded in absentia the prison sentence to Giasuddin Quader Chowdhury, the vice-chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).

A Bangladeshi opposition leader was sentenced to three years in prison for allegedly giving death threats to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at an event last year. A Chittagong court awarded in absentia the prison sentence to Giasuddin Quader Chowdhury, the vice-chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). The court also slapped a fine of 5,000 Bangladeshi takas on the BNP leader with an additional three-month prison term for failure to pay the fine, Additional Public Prosecutor Sameer Das Gupta was quoted by bdnews24 as saying. On May 29 last year, Chowdhury had allegedly said at a function that Hasina's fate would turn out to be "worse" than that of her father and country's founder Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who was assassinated in 1975. The next day, ruling Awami League general secretary of Fatikchhari unit, Nazimuddin Muhuri, had filed a case in the court against the BNP leader for his alleged comments, court sources told The Dhaka Tribune. The court had issued an arrest warrant against Chowdhury on May 31 of that year. Chowdhury is the younger brother of Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, who was executed in 2015 in connection with his role in war crimes committed in 1971 during the Liberation War.

Bangladesh opposition leader jailed over alleged death threats to Prime Minister

<p>Dhaka residents woke up on Monday to the news of Bangladesh Prime Minister <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/bangladesh-pm-hasinas-party-registers-landslide-victory-in-parliamentary-polls-187416">Sheikh Hasina's election victory</a> giving her a third straight term following a vote that the opposition rejected as rigged.</p>

<p>Local residents reading the morning newspapers said they were happy with the result and looked forward to the country further developing under Hasina's leadership.</p>

<p>Hasina's win consolidated her decade-long rule over Bangladesh, where she is credited with improving the economy and promoting development but has also been accused of rampant human rights abuses, a crackdown on the media and suppressing dissent. She denies such charges.</p>

<p>Opposition leader Kamal Hossain said their alliance, the National Unity Front led by the BNP, had called on the Election Commission to order a fresh vote under a neutral administration "as soon as possible", alleging Sunday's poll was flawed.</p>

<p>Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's alliance won Bangladesh's election with a thumping majority, giving her a third straight term following a vote that the opposition rejected as rigged.</p>

<p>The alliance dominated by her Awami League, seen as close to regional power India, won 287 of the 298 seats for which results have been declared, the commission said. There are 300 constituencies in the country.</p>

<p>The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which boycotted the last poll in 2014, won just six seats.</p>

<p>Raising minimum wages for workers in Bangladesh's massive garments industry, the world's second biggest after China, could be one of her first tasks after she takes office, party leaders have said. Hasina will meet foreign journalists and poll observers at her official residence later on Monday.</p>


Dhaka residents woke up on Monday to the news of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's election victory giving her a third straight term following a vote that the opposition rejected as rigged.

Dhaka residents woke up on Monday to the news of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's election victory giving her a third straight term following a vote that the opposition rejected as rigged. Local residents reading the morning newspapers said they were happy with the result and looked forward to the country further developing under Hasina's leadership. Hasina's win consolidated her decade-long rule over Bangladesh, where she is credited with improving the economy and promoting development but has also been accused of rampant human rights abuses, a crackdown on the media and suppressing dissent. She denies such charges. Opposition leader Kamal Hossain said their alliance, the National Unity Front led by the BNP, had called on the Election Commission to order a fresh vote under a neutral administration "as soon as possible", alleging Sunday's poll was flawed. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's alliance won Bangladesh's election with a thumping majority, giving her a third straight term following a vote that the opposition rejected as rigged. The alliance dominated by her Awami League, seen as close to regional power India, won 287 of the 298 seats for which results have been declared, the commission said. There are 300 constituencies in the country. The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which boycotted the last poll in 2014, won just six seats. Raising minimum wages for workers in Bangladesh's massive garments industry, the world's second biggest after China, could be one of her first tasks after she takes office, party leaders have said. Hasina will meet foreign journalists and poll observers at her official residence later on Monday.

Dhaka residents hope for development after PM Sheikh Hasina's election win

<p>If not anything else, escalation of India-China standoff in the Doklam plateau at the Bhutan-China border will put Bangladesh in a precarious situation. Another Indo-China war will make it worse. Had this been in the seventies, especially in the years right after Bangladesh&rsquo;s birth, the country wouldn&rsquo;t have worried much about China and put its weight behind India.</p>

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<h5>China, the new global economic super power, is the largest trading partner of Bangladesh, over taking India a few years back</h5>
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<p>But, since those years,&nbsp;a lot of water has passed under the bridges over the Ganges, Padma and Yangtze and miraculous changes have taken place. China, the new global economic super power, is the largest trading partner of Bangladesh, overtaking India a few years back. China is also the biggest potential investor in capital-crunched Bangladesh.</p>

<p>Alongside trade and investment, military cooperation between China and Bangladesh has steadily increased for two reasons. One, China has no border with Bangladesh and&nbsp;there is hardly any possibility of military conflict between the two nations. Two, Chinese armaments are affordable and come with some reasonable standard. For similar reasons, many other small to medium size developing countries resort to Chinese weapons and equipment. However, when the Chinese ambassador to Dhaka bragged about Beijing-Dhaka cosiness on military cooperation, it&nbsp;doesn&rsquo;t make too much sense; for example, it is fundamentally different from China-Pakistan military cooperation.</p>

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<h5>As far as defence is concerned, at least, the current government of Bangladesh don&rsquo;t consider India as any imminent threat.</h5>
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<p>Some Indian politicians,&nbsp;strategists and media fail to grasp Bangladesh&rsquo;s subtle stand on Dhaka-Beijing dynamics as well as Bangladesh&rsquo;s defence concerns and defence architecture. They unwisely get worried and raise alarms. In the current geo-economic reality, Bangladesh can&rsquo;t shut its door on China and be deprived of what China is generously offering and which no other countries can match up to. &nbsp;China is giving to Bangladesh massive and much needed FDI in infrastructure and manufacturing which will also bring export earnings, jobs for the ever increasing work force, better public service and pave the way for more domestic and external investment. The Chinese are also economically benefitting from&nbsp;such ventures.</p>

<p>As far as defence is concerned, at least, the current government of Bangladesh doesn&#39;t consider India as an&nbsp;imminent threat. They are quite pragmatic and understand India&rsquo;s general approach towards national security matters. The present government in Bangladesh would have been more comfortable to work with a secular Indian government rather the right wing one. Having said that, good will and trust building endeavour from both the sides are significant.</p>

<p>There are certain facts and widely accepted defence strategies from which Bangladesh can&rsquo;t really escape. When one is surrounded by a highly militarised zone, e.g. the Indian north-east, and a semi-hostile neighbour i.e. Myanmar, which is constantly pushing the Rohingyas into Bangladesh, then it needs some degree of military preparations, just in case it gets into any worst case scenario. Bangladesh, after all, is a sizable country of 160 million people and it&#39;s already world&rsquo;s 33rd&nbsp;largest economy with an impressive growth rate of more than 6 per cent.</p>

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<h5>The worst thing for Bangladesh would be if the Chinese and Indians start fighting each other in a big way and Bangladesh is forced to take a side.</h5>
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<p>The first post-independence Awami League government didn&rsquo;t have a good relation with China as the latter supported Pakistan in 1971. The disconnect between Awami League and China lingered for years. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina undertook an initiative to break the ice when she was a leader of the Opposition quite a few years back and made a trip to the Land of the Dragon. The Chinese remembered her diplomatic effort and rather than supporting BNP, its perceived friend in Bangladesh and Hasina&#39;s political opponent, China stayed away from the tumults of Bangladesh&rsquo;s recent domestic politics.</p>

<p>However, the worst thing for Bangladesh would be if the Chinese and Indians start fighting each other in a big way and Bangladesh is forced to take a side.</p>

<p>So far, Bangladesh has&nbsp;been careful about Indian sensitivities and honoured it even by accepting losses, the same can&#39;t be said about India though. Only China made a viable offer to construct the much needed deep seaport while India decided to put it on the back burner as it considered such a port as one of the dots in the so called Strings of Pearls. In the recent Belt and Road summit in Beijing, Bangladesh sent a low profile official though many expected Sheikh Hasina to join.</p>

<p>But Bangladesh is a relatively weaker country in a reasonably volatile region and, therefore, can&rsquo;t afford to be too isolated and put all the eggs in one dubious basket. It&rsquo;s not clear how long India&rsquo;s Nehruvian defense philosophy would last, especially, amidst the ongoing right wing drumming. Under pressure, Prime Minister Modi is already trying to be aggressive. Domestically, the BJP often say anti-Bangladeshi things, especially in the east and north-eastern India. Such news pour&nbsp;into Bangladesh quite easily in this age of information super connectivity. Deep inside, Bangladesh worries that it could become a victim of future saffron aggression.</p>

<p>With an imploding Islamic world and a disinterested U.S, only China offers crucial geostrategic support to Bangladesh. No high officials of the Bangladeshi diplomatic corps or top policy-making forums will, however, utter this openly, but they know it far too well. And there is hardly anything irrational in that. For a long-lasting and genuinely close Bangladesh-India relation,&nbsp;it&rsquo;s better that there is no divergence between what the government says at the bilateral level and what the political forces say&nbsp;domestically. At the end of the day, India and Bangladesh share&nbsp;a very special relationship and no matter what the current political and economic exigencies are, the relationship needs to be protected to ensure stability and peace in the region.</p>


Bangladesh needs investment and military equipment from China but it can't offend India either.

If not anything else, escalation of India-China standoff in the Doklam plateau at the Bhutan-China border will put Bangladesh in a precarious situation. Another Indo-China war will make it worse. Had this been in the seventies, especially in the years right after Bangladesh’s birth, the country wouldn’t have worried much about China and put its weight behind India. China, the new global economic super power, is the largest trading partner of Bangladesh, over taking India a few years back × But, since those years, a lot of water has passed under the bridges over the Ganges, Padma and Yangtze and miraculous changes have taken place. China, the new global economic super power, is the largest trading partner of Bangladesh, overtaking India a few years back. China is also the biggest potential investor in capital-crunched Bangladesh. Alongside trade and investment, military cooperation between China and Bangladesh has steadily increased for two reasons. One, China has no border with Bangladesh and there is hardly any possibility of military conflict between the two nations. Two, Chinese armaments are affordable and come with some reasonable standard. For similar reasons, many other small to medium size developing countries resort to Chinese weapons and equipment. However, when the Chinese ambassador to Dhaka bragged about Beijing-Dhaka cosiness on military cooperation, it doesn’t make too much sense; for example, it is fundamentally different from China-Pakistan military cooperation. As far as defence is concerned, at least, the current government of Bangladesh don’t consider India as any imminent threat. × Some Indian politicians, strategists and media fail to grasp Bangladesh’s subtle stand on Dhaka-Beijing dynamics as well as Bangladesh’s defence concerns and defence architecture. They unwisely get worried and raise alarms. In the current geo-economic reality, Bangladesh can’t shut its door on China and be deprived of what China is generously offering and which no other countries can match up to. China is giving to Bangladesh massive and much needed FDI in infrastructure and manufacturing which will also bring export earnings, jobs for the ever increasing work force, better public service and pave the way for more domestic and external investment. The Chinese are also economically benefitting from such ventures. As far as defence is concerned, at least, the current government of Bangladesh doesn't consider India as an imminent threat. They are quite pragmatic and understand India’s general approach towards national security matters. The present government in Bangladesh would have been more comfortable to work with a secular Indian government rather the right wing one. Having said that, good will and trust building endeavour from both the sides are significant. There are certain facts and widely accepted defence strategies from which Bangladesh can’t really escape. When one is surrounded by a highly militarised zone, e.g. the Indian north-east, and a semi-hostile neighbour i.e. Myanmar, which is constantly pushing the Rohingyas into Bangladesh, then it needs some degree of military preparations, just in case it gets into any worst case scenario. Bangladesh, after all, is a sizable country of 160 million people and it's already world’s 33rd largest economy with an impressive growth rate of more than 6 per cent. The worst thing for Bangladesh would be if the Chinese and Indians start fighting each other in a big way and Bangladesh is forced to take a side. × The first post-independence Awami League government didn’t have a good relation with China as the latter supported Pakistan in 1971. The disconnect between Awami League and China lingered for years. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina undertook an initiative to break the ice when she was a leader of the Opposition quite a few years back and made a trip to the Land of the Dragon. The Chinese remembered her diplomatic effort and rather than supporting BNP, its perceived friend in Bangladesh and Hasina's political opponent, China stayed away from the tumults of Bangladesh’s recent domestic politics. However, the worst thing for Bangladesh would be if the Chinese and Indians start fighting each other in a big way and Bangladesh is forced to take a side. So far, Bangladesh has been careful about Indian sensitivities and honoured it even by accepting losses, the same can't be said about India though. Only China made a viable offer to construct the much needed deep seaport while India decided to put it on the back burner as it considered such a port as one of the dots in the so called Strings of Pearls. In the recent Belt and Road summit in Beijing, Bangladesh sent a low profile official though many expected Sheikh Hasina to join. But Bangladesh is a relatively weaker country in a reasonably volatile region and, therefore, can’t afford to be too isolated and put all the eggs in one dubious basket. It’s not clear how long India’s Nehruvian defense philosophy would last, especially, amidst the ongoing right wing drumming. Under pressure, Prime Minister Modi is already trying to be aggressive. Domestically, the BJP often say anti-Bangladeshi things, especially in the east and north-eastern India. Such news pour into Bangladesh quite easily in this age of information super connectivity. Deep inside, Bangladesh worries that it could become a victim of future saffron aggression. With an imploding Islamic world and a disinterested U.S, only China offers crucial geostrategic support to Bangladesh. No high officials of the Bangladeshi diplomatic corps or top policy-making forums will, however, utter this openly, but they know it far too well. And there is hardly anything irrational in that. For a long-lasting and genuinely close Bangladesh-India relation, it’s better that there is no divergence between what the government says at the bilateral level and what the political forces say domestically. At the end of the day, India and Bangladesh share a very special relationship and no matter what the current political and economic exigencies are, the relationship needs to be protected to ensure stability and peace in the region.

Why a war between India and China is bad for Bangladesh

<p>Indian foreign secretary Subrahmanyam Jaishankar is due in Dhaka tomorrow to convey a letter of invitation to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to meet her Indian counterpart Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
Jaishankar would meet with Bangladesh foreign secretary Shahidul Haque to finalise the date and firm up the agendas to be discussed during her visit, which is expected in April.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
Bangladesh should be expecting an affirmation of commitment towards investments and lines of credit mostly in areas of infrastructure projects such as roads, railways, waterways and energy, Ambassador Munshi Faiz Ahmad, chairman of Bangladesh Institute of International Strategic Studies told WION.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
&ldquo;Around $11 billion of investments from India in the power, LNG (liquefied natural gas) and port sectors in Bangladesh are in the pipeline. India has also been offered sites by Bangladesh for setting up Special Economic Zones exclusively for Indian companies to invest,&rdquo; said Harsha Vardhan Shringla, the High Commissioner of India in Bangladesh in a statement last week.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
At $6.14 billion for financial year 2015-16, Bangladesh is India&rsquo;s largest trade partner in South Asia.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
The water sharing of Teesta, which has a downstream towards Bangladesh restrained during the period of irrigation, will not likely find a resolution even this time due to bureaucracy and strains between India&#39;s central and provincial government.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
&ldquo;We are in a way stuck on India&rsquo;s centre-provincial relations. It&rsquo;s not easy to get out of that,&rdquo; said Ahmad.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
There will likely be reaffirmation on security cooperation between the two countries that already shares &ldquo;extremely friendly cooperation on security matters and on issues of reducing threats of extremism, separatism and insurgency,&rdquo; he said.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
Ahmad expressed concerns over the non-traditional security issues across the frontiers between India and Bangladesh that stretch over 4,000 kilometres. The trafficking of contraband, cattle and even human is causing serious implications through killing of unarmed Bangladeshi people by the Indian border security.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
&ldquo;There is a marked reduction in it but it has not stopped completely and therefore we would like to see more progress on this,&rdquo; Ahmad shared with WION.</p>

<p>(WION)</p>


At more than $6 billion for the financial year 2015-16, Bangladesh is India?s largest trade partner in South Asia

Indian foreign secretary Subrahmanyam Jaishankar is due in Dhaka tomorrow to convey a letter of invitation to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to meet her Indian counterpart Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi. Jaishankar would meet with Bangladesh foreign secretary Shahidul Haque to finalise the date and firm up the agendas to be discussed during her visit, which is expected in April. Bangladesh should be expecting an affirmation of commitment towards investments and lines of credit mostly in areas of infrastructure projects such as roads, railways, waterways and energy, Ambassador Munshi Faiz Ahmad, chairman of Bangladesh Institute of International Strategic Studies told WION. “Around $11 billion of investments from India in the power, LNG (liquefied natural gas) and port sectors in Bangladesh are in the pipeline. India has also been offered sites by Bangladesh for setting up Special Economic Zones exclusively for Indian companies to invest,” said Harsha Vardhan Shringla, the High Commissioner of India in Bangladesh in a statement last week. At $6.14 billion for financial year 2015-16, Bangladesh is India’s largest trade partner in South Asia. The water sharing of Teesta, which has a downstream towards Bangladesh restrained during the period of irrigation, will not likely find a resolution even this time due to bureaucracy and strains between India's central and provincial government. “We are in a way stuck on India’s centre-provincial relations. It’s not easy to get out of that,” said Ahmad. There will likely be reaffirmation on security cooperation between the two countries that already shares “extremely friendly cooperation on security matters and on issues of reducing threats of extremism, separatism and insurgency,” he said. Ahmad expressed concerns over the non-traditional security issues across the frontiers between India and Bangladesh that stretch over 4,000 kilometres. The trafficking of contraband, cattle and even human is causing serious implications through killing of unarmed Bangladeshi people by the Indian border security. “There is a marked reduction in it but it has not stopped completely and therefore we would like to see more progress on this,” Ahmad shared with WION. (WION)

India set to invest $11bn in Bangladesh power and port sectors

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