India allowing ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina to interact openly with the media in Delhi was deeply hurtful to Bangladeshis and detrimental to the development of harmonious ties between Bangladesh and India, the government said last night.
In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, "Bangladesh is outraged that the absconding convicted genocider [sic] Sheikh Hasina was allowed this evening to engage in live interaction with the media in New Delhi where she and her henchmen launched venomous vitriol against the State of Bangladesh and her people."
It also questioned the timing of the event.
"On a day when the people of Bangladesh are observing the second anniversary of the July Revolution, this interaction by Sheikh Hasina on Indian soil stands as an affront to the sovereignty of Bangladesh and a grievous insult to the martyrs of the July Revolution," the statement said.
"Dhaka deeply regrets that in spite of concerns conveyed apriori to the Government of India about the likely ramifications of this event on the reset of our bilateral relations, this public event was permitted to be held," read the statement.
The foreign ministry also accused Hasina of denying the United Nations' findings on the killing of civilians, including children, during the July-August 2024 uprising, saying the people of Bangladesh had rejected such attempts.
"Upholding the spirit of the July Revolution, our people have firmly resolved that our nation will never again go back to the dark days of fascism and that Bangladesh will never be a client state. Convicted mass murderer Hasina and her mafia enterprise will never have a place in the polity of Bangladesh."
The statement said that Dhaka wants to maintain a constructive, mutually beneficial, and forward-looking ties with New Delhi based on sovereign equality, mutual respect, non-interference in each other's internal affairs, and national dignity.
It expressed regret that Bangladesh's repeated requests for Hasina's return under the 2013 Bangladesh-India Extradition Treaty had yet to receive a response.
Hasina, during the media interaction hosted by the Foreign Correspondents' Club of South Asia, said that the ban on the activities of her Awami League should be lifted and reiterated that she would return to Bangladesh in December.
