Bangladesh asks India to stop Sheikh Hasina from making 'false statements'

DHAKA: Bangladesh has asked India to stop ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from making “false and fabricated” comments while she is in the country, its foreign ministry said.

Sheikh Hasina fled to India in August following violent protests that killed more than 1,000 people.

In an online address on Wednesday, she called on her supporters to stand against the interim government in Bangladesh, accusing it of seizing power unconstitutionally.

Thousands of protesters trying to disrupt Hasina’s address had demolished and set fire to the home of Mujibur Rahman, her father and Bangladesh’s founding leader. The violence continued after Hasina spoke.

Bangladesh’s foreign ministry handed over a protest note to India’s acting high commissioner in Dhaka, conveying “deep concern, disappointment and serious reservation” over her comments, it said on its Facebook page.

“The ministry … requested … India to immediately take appropriate measures, in the spirit of mutual respect and understanding, to stop her from making such false, fabricated and incendiary statements,” it said.

Sheikh Hasina could not be contacted for comment.

Although India did not comment on the communication from Bangladesh, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal condemned the destruction of Rahman’s home as an “act of vandalism”.

“All those who value the freedom struggle that nurtured Bangla identity and pride are aware of the importance of this residence for the national consciousness of Bangladesh,” he said.

It was in the same house that Rahman declared Bangladesh’s independence from Pakistan in 1971, and he and most of his family were assassinated within its walls in 1975.

Hasina transformed the building into a museum dedicated to her father’s legacy.

The interim government’s chief adviser, Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, appealed to people on Friday to restore law and order and ensure there were no more attacks on properties linked to Hasina’s family or politicians from her Awami League party.

“Any attacks to their properties gives them an excuse to draw international attention to themselves and dish out their fabricated stories … Any deterioration of law and order will give a wrong message to the world,” he said.

Bangladesh has been grappling with political strife since Hasina was ousted, with the interim government struggling to maintain law and order amid continuing unrest.

India and Bangladesh, which share a 4,000 kilometre (2,500 miles) border, have longstanding cultural and business ties.