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Is India putting pressure on BD?The POST, Sun, Aug,26, 2007.Pervaiz Iqbal Cheema
It has been reported that the recent arrests of some Awami League (AL) leaders and consequently the information gathered during the investigation appeared to have made India somewhat apprehensive. What is specifically worrying India is the likely release of information relating AL leaders’ possible connection with Indian intelligence agency RAW. If the connections are proved and information released with evidence, it would certainly have adverse impact on the future of AL politics in Bangladesh. Besides, it could not only take a heavy toll of India’s international image but would also undermine the politics of pro-India lobby in Bangladesh. Not only some knowledgeable observers but also some newspapers expressed that the recent visit of Indian Home secretary was primarily meant to put pressure on the Bangladeshi government with a damage limitation agenda. Cognizant of urgent need for damage limitation, the dispatch of Home Secretary to do some plain talking with the caretaker government does make sense. Part of the circumstantial evidence advanced include the almost regular telephonic contact between the AL leaders and the leading members of the Indian government including foreign minister Pronab Mukerjee and RAW’s chief Trivedi. Observers believe the India is determined to protect its long term investment in Bangladeshi politics by ensuring the return of AL government with whom they enjoyed special relationship in the past and would like to revive those good old days. Another issue that is being increasingly viewed as a form of pressure on Bangladesh is the quietly fencing the Indo-Bangladesh border. While the decision in US to fence the Mexican border triggered a long debate and the Israeli announcement to build 680 kilometer wall around the West bank caused an international outcry, not much has been said about the Indian long term project of fencing Bangladeshi border. It is a well known fact that India is quite enamored with fences in the recent years. It has already built fence on Punjabi Suba’s border with Pakistani Punjab. Then it turned it attention on Kashmir. It has built fence in the disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir on grounds that it is meant to stop infiltrations alleged to be crossing over from the Azad Jammu and Kashmir territory. The third case is that of Bangladesh where the Indians have already started a US$1.2 billion project which once completed would encircle Bangladesh. The fencing of Bangladesh started during the last decade. It has already built 2500 (1550 miles) kilometers. Eventually it is expected that it will reach 3,300 kilometer (2,050 miles). India has been quietly constructing the fence around Bangladesh. In almost all of the above mentioned cases Indian justification was on the alleged infiltrations of militants. As far as Bangladesh is concerned India believes that some Indian militant groups are based in Bangladesh- a charge the Bangladeshi government denies. Another reason that is often advanced by the Indian authorities relates to the alleged illegal immigrants. While it is somewhat difficult to assess the exact number, various reports have periodically indicated that a large number of Bangladeshis are already living in Indian large cities. It is not very uncommon that population living in the border areas often use the grazing grounds without realizing that they have crossed over into another country’s territory. Fencing of the border area would obviously deny access to Bangladeshi formers from now onward. Many in Dhaka feel the heat of Indian pressures but since the fence is built on Indian soil, there nothing they can do about it. Some Bangladeshi views the gradual erection of fence as somewhat insulting but they do recognize their inability to do anything about it. For many Bangladeshis the open border was in many ways a lifeline. On the Indians side mostly there are woods whereas on the Bangladeshi there are most huts and rice paddies in most areas. The poor farming community is particularly hit by the fencing project. Two other areas where the Bangladeshi feels the squeeze from the Indian side are related to water sharing and competition in garment trade. For years the Bangladeshi have complained that they are not getting their share in Ganges waters. Admittedly there exists Frakha Barrage agreement but one reads about many complaints about the denial of due share to Bangladesh. The lean periods invariably cause expressions of discontentment with the agreement. Being a larger country, it is expected that India would behave like an elder brother who guides and facilitate progress of smaller regional nations. But ground realities depict a totally different picture than what India projects. The competition in the garment trade has also some contributions towards the Indo-Bangladeshi tensions. Compare the export of Indian garment industries to US which was around eight billion dollars, the Bangladeshis exported to US garments worth 7.8 billion dollars. It is expected that this years the Bangladeshi garment export will overtake the Indian garment export. While India has made commendable strides in many areas, its record in the region is not very attractive. Its policies are view with apprehensions in South Asia. It does not behave like an elder brother but prefers to be an assertive master. Its relations with all the neighbors are less than satisfactory. It preference for imposition upon other regional neighbor has also created difficulties in the way of smooth function of the regional cooperative organizations. Its belief in self righteousness and a dismissive attitude has created unnecessary difficulties in the smooth functioning of regional organization. India needs to learn how to respect smaller regional countries. It should strive to take the entire region together. It should abandon weaving its conflictual web and try to secure a much desired regional unity. There is no doubt that regional unity could facilitate India’s desire to be a global power. After sixty years of independent existence India still appears to believe in dictation rather removing apprehensions and concerns of the regional countries through amicable dialogue. Pressurization of Bangladesh would not ensure the Indian objectives but it could further push it away.
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