Staff Reporter:
Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain yesterday said that taking the right bilateral steps could help alleviate public discontent towards Bangladesh-India relations.
“It’s possible to ease public dissatisfaction towards India. I believe we need to take very correct bilateral steps to address this,” he told reporters at the foreign ministry this afternoon.
Hossain noted that while the ‘golden chapter’ of Bangladesh-India relations is apparent at the governmen-tal level, it has not extended to the general public.
“We want to see strong people-to-people ties. The public should feel that there is a genuinely good rela-tionship between Bangladesh and India, but unfortunately, this aspect has been lacking,” he said.
He criticized the Indian media for creating exaggerated narratives, contrasting them with international media outlets, which he said are known for their substantive and neutral coverage.
Hossain criticized the Indian media for creating exaggerated narratives on Bangladesh after the student-people revolution, noting that international media, known for their substantive and neutral coverage, did not echo the same sentiment.
He acknowledged that while there was some unrest, it has since been resolved.
Touhid noted that Chief Adviser Professor Dr Muhammad Yunus is keen on revitalizing SAARC as a regional forum.
Regarding relations with Pakistan, the foreign adviser noted that there were tensions between Bangladesh and Pakistan during the previous government for some reasons, but improving these ties would be bene-ficial for both nations.
“We seek friendship with all. There is no benefit in creating tension with Pakistan,” he said.
