The Bangladeshi High Commission in New Delhi and the Assistant High Commission in Agartala have suspended consular and visa services until further notice amid diplomatic tensions following unrest in Bangladesh.
The decision came two days after a group of 20 to 25 persons protested outside the Bangladeshi High Commission in New Delhi, The Daily Star reported on Monday.
Bangladesh’s Foreign Adviser Touhid Hossain told reporters in Dhaka on Sunday that he had received information that the country’s High Commissioner Riaz Hamidullah had been made death threats by protesters on Saturday evening, the newspaper reported.
On Sunday, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs rejected reports in Bangladesh claiming that Indian citizens had threatened Bangladeshi diplomats in New Delhi, calling the allegations “misleading propaganda”.
Responding to queries about the reported demonstration, external affairs ministry Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Sunday said that a group of 20 to 25 persons had gathered to protest the killing of Dipu Chandra Das, a member of Bangladesh’s Hindu community, and to demand protection for minorities in the country.
Das was beaten to death on Thursday after which his body was allegedly tied to a tree and set on fire during the unrest in Bangladesh last week.
Jaiswal on Sunday added that there had been no attempt to breach security at the Bangladeshi High Commission and that the gathering dispersed within minutes, reiterating India’s commitment to the safety of foreign missions and diplomats under the Vienna Convention.
The suspension of services came against the backdrop of widespread unrest in Bangladesh following the killing of student leader Sharif Osman Bin Hadi.
The death of Hadi, a prominent leader of the 2024 student-led movement against the Sheikh Hasina government, triggered protests, vandalism and clashes in several parts of Bangladesh.
Stones were thrown at the residence of the assistant Indian high commissioner in Chittagong on Thursday. The offices of newspapers and properties linked to Hasina’s Awami League were also attacked.
On Sunday, New Delhi suspended visa operations at its Chittagong centre and heightened security around Indian diplomatic missions following attacks in Bangladesh.
India operates five Indian Visa Application Centres in Bangladesh: Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi, Chittagong and Sylhet. An official told PTI that the remaining four centres were operational as of Sunday.
India had resumed visa operations at its Dhaka centre on Thursday, a day after suspending services amid heightened security concerns. The centres in Rajshahi and Khulna were also briefly shut after anti-India protesters attempted to march towards Indian missions in those cities.
Agartala
The Bangladeshi Assistant High Commission in Agartala on Monday also said that consular and visa services at the mission will be closed from Tuesday until further notice.
This came after protests were held last week outside the Assistant High Commission in Agartala by a Hindutva group and the youth wing of the TIPRA Motha Party, an ally of Tripura’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
The demonstrators were protesting against remarks by leaders in Bangladesh threatening to isolate India’s North East states and to provide refuge to the region’s separatist groups if Bangladesh is destabilised.
Protests in Kolkata
West Bengal’s Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari and Congress leaders held protests outside the Bangladeshi Deputy High Commission in Kolkata on Monday against attacks on Hindus in the neighbouring country, The Hindu reported.
Adhikari, along with Bharatiya Janata Party supporters, attempted to march to the Bangladeshi Deputy High Commission in the Beck Bagan area and were stopped by the Kolkata Police citing security concerns, the newspaper reported.
The protesters had a scuffle with the police after being barred from entering the premises and effigies of the Muhammad Yunus, the head of Bangladesh’s interim government, were burnt.
Following this, Adhikari and others staged a sit-in on the road.
Congress workers had held a similar protest outside the Deputy High Commission a few hours before BJP’s demonstration. They were also stopped by the police before they could enter the premises to submit a deputation, The Hindu reported.
Also Read: Opinion: What India must do to help restore stability in Bangladesh
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