New low: Bangladesh summons Indian envoy to Foreign Office, its Agartala mission suspends consular services

DHAKA: Bangladesh on Tuesday summoned the Indian envoy to its Foreign Office while announcing the suspension of consular services at its mission in Agartala, a day after the premises were breached by protesters over the arrest of a Hindu monk in the neighbouring country.

There was drama too at a court in Chattogram, where monk Chinmoy Krishna Das’ bail plea was to be heard. But no lawyer appeared for him, and his supporters later claimed that his advocates are under threat.

The bail hearing in this sedition case will now take place on January 2.

Tuesday’s developments marked another low in ties between the two countries following the ouster of Sheikh Hasina as prime minister in August. India has been expressing concern over Hindus and other minorities being targeted in Bangladesh under the interim government of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus.

The issue also figured in Indian Parliament Tuesday and the British House of Commons a day earlier.

New Delhi earlier called the breach at the Agartala mission “deeply regrettable”. Tripura Police said seven people have been arrested and action taken against four policemen over the incident. Bangladesh had said its flag was desecrated.

Emerging from the meeting with acting Bangladesh foreign secretary Riaz Hamidullah in Dhaka, Indian envoy Pranay Verma said Delhi wanted to build a “constant stable, constructive relationship” and no single issue should stand as a barrier to bilateral ties.

“We are willing to engage with the interim government of Bangladesh,” he told reporters.

Earlier, Bangladesh’s Law Affairs Adviser Asif Nazrul asked New Delhi to reassess its ties with Bangladesh after the ouster of Sheikh Hasina.

“We believe in a friendship based on equality and mutual respect. While Sheikh Hasina's government followed a pro-India policy to cling to power without elections, India must realise that this is not Sheikh Hasina's Bangladesh,” he wrote on Facebook.

Tensions between the two neighbours have simmered since August 5, when Hasina fled to India in the face of large-scale anti-government protests led by students. They aggravated further with the arrest of the Hindu leader last week.

The mission in Tripura, a state which borders Bangladesh, on Tuesday announced the suspension of visa and consular services “until further notice”. Md Al-Ameen, the first secretary there, cited “security reasons”.

In Bangladesh, there was heavy security around the Chattogram court ahead of the anticipated bail hearing. Some lawyers were seen holding a protest on the premises.

Das was not brought to the court.

A government prosecutor told reporters that the court of Metropolitan Sessions Judge Mohammad Saiful Islam rescheduled the bail hearing after a plea from the prosecution side “as no lawyer appeared as defence counsel”.

Swatantra Gauranga Das, an associate of the monk at his Sammilita Sanatani Jagaran Jote, claimed that no lawyer represented the monk due to threats from a “politically motivated lawyers' group”.

International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) Kolkata spokesperson Radharamn Das has claimed that two lawyers were recently attacked by Islamists, deterring others from taking up the monk’s case.

"It is really frustrating to see that there was no defence lawyer. Is this justice? Is this how you provide free and fair justice? We would urge the Bangladesh government to look into the matter," he said.

Das’ arrest on November 25 had triggered demonstrations by supporters of the monk, who was previously with ISKCON’s Bangladesh chapter. An assistant government prosecutor, Saiful Islam Alif, was killed during a protest in Chattogram after the monk was denied bail last week.

Trinamool Congress leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay raised the issue during Zero Hour in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, urging the Centre to ask the United Nations to dispatch peacekeeping forces to Bangladesh.

Outside the West Bengal Assembly, its Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari said human rights were violated in Bangladesh, also claiming that the monk’s lawyers did not appear in court as they were beaten up.

"At least 70 lawyers have been implicated in false cases, and I have news that they have been arrested,” the BJP leader told reporters.

“See this photograph... arrested Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das' principal lawyer Ramen Roy was severely beaten up by the fundamentalists of the Jamat. And the person, Regan Acharya, who was supposed to appear on his behalf was also badly beaten up.”

In the British House of Commons, Labour MP Barry Gardiner tabled an urgent question on Monday. Catherine West, the Foreign Office Minister in charge of the Indo-Pacific, replied that the UK is monitoring developments.

“We are aware of the statement of concern from the Indian government following the arrest of Chinmoy Krishna Das, a well-known Hindu leader, on sedition charges. The UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) desk is closely monitoring those developments,” she said.

The ISKCON Kolkata Das has urged its monks and followers in Bangladesh to avoid wearing saffron robes and 'tilak' in public, advising them to practise their faith discreetly.

"The situation in Bangladesh is alarming. The monks and devotees, who have been calling us, we have told them to hide their identity as ISKCON followers or monks publicly,” he told PTI.

He added that this wasn’t an advisory, but a “personal suggestion”.