India does not endorse Hasina's statements: Vikram Misri

India's Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri on Wednesday said that India does not endorse Sheikh Hasina's criticism of the interim government in Bangladesh, Indian media The Hindu reports. 

Vikram Misri made the remark while briefing the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs, headed by Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, on his recent visit to Bangladesh and his interactions with top officials of the interim government of Bangladesh. 

The deposed prime minister of Bangladesh remains a pinprick in the India-Bangladesh relationship, he said, adding that India's ties with Bangladesh are not limited to a "single political party" or a government and that India was focused on the "people of Bangladesh."

Misri said Hasina was using “private communication devices” to make her comments and that the Government of India was not involved in providing her with any platform or facility that enabled her to carry out her political activity on Indian soil. This, he said, was part of India’s traditional practice of avoiding interference in third countries.

The Indian foreign secretary's remarks acquire significance as Hasina has been making video messages criticising the interim government in Bangladesh led by Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus.

Misri also said during his visit he conveyed India's "concerns" about the "regrettable incidents" in Bangladesh. He said India was concerned about the lack of acknowledgement of the alleged incidents of violence against minority communities but welcomed the latest report that authorities in Bangladesh had arrested 88 persons related to the violence against minority communities after the fall of the Hasina government.

Misri said both sides explained their concerns during his visit. For India, he said, the Bangladesh authorities’ decision to release many of the convicted “terrorists” who are indulging in anti-India rhetoric, remained an issue of deep concern. The Bangladesh authorities, meanwhile, flagged the “disinformation” campaign in the Indian press about the events unfolding in that country.

The Hindu claimed that Misri also said that there had been tangible improvement in the relationship after his visit. 

Misri described Bangladesh as the largest partner in trade and connectivity in South Asia and said that in recent years the two sides had built rail links, bus links, and inland waterways. He, however, informed the committee that passenger rail services between the two countries remained “suspended”.

During Misri's briefing, many committee members raised the arrest of ISKCON monks in Bangladesh. However, The Hindu said no reply was forthcoming from the foreign secretary on this matter. 

However, Misri pointed out that soon after his conversation on these lines, the press secretary of the Chief Adviser, Rafiqul Alam, held a press conference informing the number of arrests that had been made to deal with the attacks on minority groups. He also informed that some of the justification for the attacks in Bangladesh referred to the fact that the incidents involved attacks on the activists of the Awami League, the former ruling party. Misri explained that such arguments could not “justify” such attacks.

Misri said he met Foreign Affairs Adviser Touhid Hossein, Foreign Secretary Mohammad Jashim Uddin, and Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus and emphasised the need for a “democratic, peaceful, stable and inclusive” Bangladesh.

The Indian foreign secretary said that last year, 1.6 million visas were issued to visitors from Bangladesh, the largest number of visas that India has issued to any country during that time. He said India did not view the relationship with Bangladesh as one based on “reciprocity” but as one that is grounded on “good neighbourly relationship”.

Misri also informed the committee that the issue of review of bilateral treaties did not feature in his conversation with the chief adviser.