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During his visit to New York for the UN General Assembly at the beginning of this month, Chief Adviser Professor Mohammad Yunus voiced a sentiment that revealed his government's growing frustration with India. In an interview with journalist Mehdi Hasan, clips of which have been making the rounds, he stated that "one of the specialities of India now is fake news. A barrage of fake news." This episode was yet another indication of a diplomatic relationship that has been blowing cold. The chill had set in after the previous government of Sheikh Hasina was ousted and she took refuge in India following a mass uprising last year that put the current interim government at the helm. This tension is hardly surprising given that Delhi had long regarded Hasina as a reliable ally, backed her throughout her 15-year rule even as it grew increasingly authoritarian and elections became controversial. Many in Dhaka still fear that elements in Delhi may work behind the scenes to pave the way for her eventual return to power.
The cornerstone of good neighbourly relations is political non-interference that allows nations to manage their own destinies without external imposition. Yet, people witnessed New Delhi openly throwing its weight behind the Awami League government year after year even as it was accused of veering towards dictatorship. This one-sided support fuelled resentment among ordinary Bangladeshis who began to equate the excesses of the Awami League with Indian interference. This is a far-from-ideal outcome for two nations bound by deep cultural ties and a foundational history dating back to 1971.
When Sheikh Hasina was granted refuge in India after the uprising, it could be seen as a humane gesture. Whatever her political record, providing safety to a person facing life-threatening danger was consistent with international norms of compassion, as Egypt did for the Shah of Iran in 1979 and Mexico for Evo Morales in 2019. On that basis alone, Bangladesh had little reason to fault India. Yet the gesture quickly lost its moral high ground when Hasina, from the safety of Indian territory, began organising virtual meetings and giving speeches to rally opposition against Bangladesh's interim government. For Dhaka, this was a clear political provocation that placed significant strain on bilateral ties.
Ordinarily, when a neighbouring country undergoes political upheaval, the natural diplomatic instinct is to adapt and engage constructively with the new authority. From that perspective, India's approach has been disappointing and at the same time counterproductive. Rather than extending goodwill to stabilise relations, it has responded with hesitation, even hostility. One might have expected India, a country that maintains relations with governments of various political stripes globally including with Afghanistan under changed regime, to do the same with its nearest neighbour. Whether that stance will soften once a democratically elected government returns to office remains to be seen.
Adding to the strain in bilateral relations is the inflammatory rhetoric coming from India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that has done lasting damage to public perception in Bangladesh. For years, senior BJP figures have falsely asserted that millions of Bangladeshi Muslims are living illegally in India and must be expelled through measures such as the National Register of Citizens. These assertions wilfully ignore the reality that Bangladesh and India have broadly comparable levels of income, living standards and wages which makes the prospect of mass migration from Bangladesh to India economically implausible. In fact, these claims are designed to serve a domestic political agenda which is to portray Indian Muslims as foreign infiltrators and create suspicion against them.
India has long projected itself as a secular democracy where citizens of all faiths are meant to stand as equals. The divisive narratives it now promotes dismantle that foundation and tears at the social fabric that holds the country together. More alarmingly, the targeting of Indian Muslims in certain states has escalated from rhetoric to violent state-sanctioned action. There have been documented cases where under the pretext of addressing illegal migration, the authorities have detained and pushed Indian Muslims across the border into Bangladesh. One such case that drew significant media attention is that of 65-year-old Sakina Begum. A member of Assam's indigenous Garia Muslim community who speaks only Assamese, she had no connection to Bangladesh. Despite this, she was forced across the border by Indian guards. Initially sheltered by a Bangladeshi family, she was later arrested by Bangladeshi authorities for unauthorised entry and is now detained in Kashimpur Women's Central Jail.
Through such actions, India's ruling establishment is not only inflicting grave injustice upon its own citizens but also offloading its domestic problems onto Bangladesh. Indian Muslims, regardless of their faith or ancestry, are India's responsibility. To abdicate this responsibility by forcibly displacing people is unjust and unacceptable. These hateful actions also poison the atmosphere within Bangladesh where bigots seize the opportunity to vilify and justify hostility against the country's own Hindu population. In the end, it is the minorities on both sides who become the ultimate casualties of this politics of hatred.
It is no secret that India aspires to be the leading power in South Asia. While this is a legitimate ambition, its heavy-handed methods of asserting dominance are rightly causing alarm. Grievances in Bangladesh are already fuelled by longstanding issues, such as routine killing of civilians by Indian border guards and the control of trans-boundary rivers through upstream dams which strangles Bangladesh's water security. Topping this off with provocative and irresponsible act of pushing its own minority citizens across the border will only cement India's reputation as a regional bully and undermine its claim to benevolent leadership.
As a sovereign nation, it is entirely India's prerogative to decide whom it considers friendly or adversarial. But it can hardly gain anything if it transforms a historic friend into a sceptical neighbour. If India genuinely wishes to see Bangladesh as an ally, this must be demonstrated through consistent and respectful actions. Regardless of which government holds power in Dhaka, the relationship should rest on a firm diplomatic foundation that engages not specific political parties but the nation as a whole. This essential and mature statecraft is required for the long-term prosperity and security of both peoples.