Staff Reporter:
Bangladesh on Sunday rejected remarks made by India’s Ministry of External Affairs regarding demon-strations outside the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi, stating that the protests left the Bang-ladesh High Commissioner and his family feeling threatened and unsafe.
Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain yesterday outlined Bangladesh’s position while responding to questions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“We completely reject what has been said in the Indian press note. We completely reject it because the matter is not as simple as it has been presented. Our mission is located deep inside the diplomatic zone. It is not that it is outside or at the beginning of the diplomatic zone,” said the Foreign Adviser.
“The High Commissioner and his family live there. They felt threatened and frightened due to inade-quate security,” he said, adding that only two guards were present and stood silently during the protest. “So we believe it is the responsibility of the host country to strengthen security further.”
Hossain said Bangladesh is still relying on the host country to take necessary steps to ensure the safety of its diplomatic mission.
He, however, warned that Dhaka may reduce its diplomatic presence in India, if required.
Hossain said Bangladesh had heard reports that the High Commissioner was threatened with death, though no concrete evidence is currently available. “It was not a matter of a few slogans. A family lives inside the mission. The security situation was clearly inadequate.”
When asked whether Bangladesh would summon the Indian envoy over the issue, Hossain responded, “No, what we will do, leave it to us. We are taking our own measures.”
Bangladesh on Sunday rejected remarks made by India’s Ministry of External Affairs regarding demon-strations outside the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi, stating that the protests left the Bang-ladesh High Commissioner and his family feeling threatened and unsafe.
Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain yesterday outlined Bangladesh’s position while responding to questions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“We completely reject what has been said in the Indian press note. We completely reject it because the matter is not as simple as it has been presented. Our mission is located deep inside the diplomatic zone. It is not that it is outside or at the beginning of the diplomatic zone,” said the Foreign Adviser.
“The High Commissioner and his family live there. They felt threatened and frightened due to inade-quate security,” he said, adding that only two guards were present and stood silently during the protest. “So we believe it is the responsibility of the host country to strengthen security further.”
Hossain said Bangladesh is still relying on the host country to take necessary steps to ensure the safety of its diplomatic mission.
He, however, warned that Dhaka may reduce its diplomatic presence in India, if required.
Hossain said Bangladesh had heard reports that the High Commissioner was threatened with death, though no concrete evidence is currently available. “It was not a matter of a few slogans. A family lives inside the mission. The security situation was clearly inadequate.”
When asked whether Bangladesh would summon the Indian envoy over the issue, Hossain responded, “No, what we will do, leave it to us. We are taking our own measures.”
