Modi govt punishes Bangladesh, lesson for anti India Yunus as Centre decided to end….

In a important transfer that shows rising tensions between India and Bangladesh, New Delhi has decided to end a special replace route that allowed Bangladeshi goods to transfer through Indian ports and airports en path to the Heart East, Europe, and various global markets. This transshipment facility, which had been in verbalize since 2020 and formally extended in 2022, gave Bangladesh more uncomplicated opt up entry to to global replace routes by the use of Indian infrastructure. Nonetheless, India has now officially withdrawn the facility, effective April 8.

The decision comes quickly after a controversial comment made by Muhammad Yunus, head of Bangladesh’s meantime executive, in the center of a consult with to China. Yunus claimed that India’s northeastern states are “landlocked” and can handiest opt up entry to the ocean through Bangladesh. His feedback sparked backlash and are believed to thrill in contributed to India’s decision to roll assist the facility.

Nonetheless, India has made it certain that the exemption will continue for Bangladeshi goods headed to Nepal and Bhutan. These two countries are landlocked, and beneath World Alternate Organisation (WTO) tips, such transit opt up entry to is a important for them.

Explaining the transfer, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated that the facility had change into a burden on India’s maintain ports and airports. “It became causing well-known congestion, ensuing in delays and additional costs for our exporters,” he stated.

He added that the ensuing backlogs were affecting India’s maintain shipments and creating logistical challenges.

With this pattern, Bangladesh will now wish to rely extra carefully by itself ports or watch different preparations for its exports, finally for locations past Nepal and Bhutan. The transfer also indicators a cooling of diplomatic warmth between the two neighbours.

India ends export route for Bangladesh

The decision became confirmed by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC), which issued a notification withdrawing the transshipment facility. The association had allowed Bangladeshi cargo to transfer through Indian territory for global replace.

Nonetheless, Indian officials delight in clarified that this replace acquired’t impression Bangladeshi goods being transported to Nepal or Bhutan, as each are landlocked countries and are entitled to such opt up entry to beneath global replace tips.

Tensions escalated extra after a meeting between High Minister Narendra Modi and Yunus on April 4 in Bangkok in the center of the BIMSTEC summit. While India acknowledged the meeting, it expressed displeasure over how Bangladesh’s facet portrayed it.

Particularly, Indian officials rejected Dhaka’s claims that Modi responded positively to Yunus’ request to extradite light High Minister Sheikh Hasina. The description of the meeting became labeled as “politically motivated” and “misleading,” particularly the parts about minority problems and extradition talks.

Shafiqul Alam, Yunus’ press secretary, posted on Facebook that the extradition request became raised with Modi and the “response became no longer detrimental.” Nonetheless, Indian sources delight in pushed aside this version, asserting it misrepresented Modi’s views and became factually unsuitable.

New Delhi has yet to officially answer to Bangladesh’s earlier request for Hasina’s extradition, made in 2023.

India-Bangladesh ties strained over minority attacks and China’s involvement in Teesta mission

India’s relationship with Bangladesh has taken a provocative downturn in most contemporary months, largely due to rising concerns over rising violence against minorities—particularly Hindus—in Bangladesh beneath the most contemporary meantime leadership of Muhammad Yunus.

One in all the biggest aspects of friction has been the failure of the meantime executive in Dhaka to end attacks on minority communities. This area became brought up straight by Indian High Minister Narendra Modi in the center of his meeting with Yunus in Bangkok on Friday, on the sidelines of the BIMSTEC summit.

In conserving with an official Indian assertion, Modi made it certain that the safety of Hindus and various minority groups in Bangladesh is a well-known area for New Delhi. He also instructed that “rhetoric that worsens the verbalize of affairs desires to be prevented.”

Any other gentle area including gas to the tensions is Bangladesh’s transfer to involve China in a major mission on the Teesta River, a river shared with India. India has prolonged considered Chinese involvement in South Asian water initiatives as a strategic red flag.

Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal principal that each countries share 54 rivers—including the Teesta and Ganga—and that there is an present dialogue platform called the Joint Rivers Price to tackle such issues. Nonetheless, he added that any discussions on water-sharing or joint initiatives can handiest happen when the overall ambiance between the two countries is cooperative.

Meanwhile, Sheikh Hasina, the light High Minister of Bangladesh, has been residing in New Delhi since August final yr after fleeing political instability and alleged threats in Dhaka. Her presence in India is believed to be one other underlying part in the strained relationship.

India has no longer yet responded formally to Dhaka’s request to extradite Hasina, nonetheless the most contemporary dispositions and public statements counsel that New Delhi is searching at the verbalize of affairs carefully—and can very nicely be losing persistence with the Yunus-led meantime executive.