Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry summoned India's acting High Commissioner and lodged a formal protest over comments by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. Director General (South Asia) Ishrat Jahan conveyed Dhaka's position on Thursday. Indian officials stated that Sarma's views do not represent the government.
Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry summoned India's acting High Commissioner Pawan Badhe on Thursday and lodged a formal protest over remarks by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. Director General (South Asia) Ishrat Jahan conveyed Dhaka's position to the Indian diplomat, according to an official quoted in Bangladesh media reports.
In a social media post last week, Sarma stated that 20 foreign nationals were apprehended in Assam and pushed back to Bangladesh. “Rude people don’t understand soft language. We continuously remind ourselves of this prophetic line when we expel infiltrators from Assam who don’t leave themselves. For instance, these 20 illegal Bangladeshis who were PUSHED BACK last night,” Sarma wrote.
Ishrat told the diplomat that such comments undermine the spirit of friendly relations between the two countries. She described the remarks as “disparaging” to Bangladesh-India ties and urged restraint on sensitive bilateral issues.
Indian officials in Delhi said Sarma's views do not represent the government's position. India has been working to stabilise ties with Bangladesh's new government under BNP leader and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, and sources noted that such comments harm the atmosphere. India appointed former Union minister Dinesh Trivedi as High Commissioner to Bangladesh to strengthen relations.
