Foreign affairs adviser Md Touhid Hossain on Monday said that bilateral relations were a big thing and emphasised that the relations Between Bangladesh and India would remain unhurt if former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s stay there prolonged.
‘This is a hypothetical question. If someone stays in a country, why the relations with that particular country will be affected? There is no reason for that,’ he said.
The adviser made the remarks when a journalist wanted to know whether bilateral relations with India would be affected if Sheikh Hasina’s stay in India got prolonged.
He said that bilateral relations were relations of interests and friendship is also for interest. ‘Friendship does not exist if the interest is hurt.’
He said that the two sides – Bangladesh and India – had interests and they would follow those interests.
Touhid said that they would always try to maintain good relations with India.
Earlier, he briefed the diplomats stationed in Dhaka at the same venue where Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Verma, among others, was present.
He also said that they were not abandoning any commitment with any country as those commitments were made by Bangladesh.
India said that they did not have an update on former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s plans and it would not be appropriate at this point in time to comment on her plans.
‘As far as former prime minister Sheikh Hasina is concerned, I told you that we don’t have an update on her plans. It is for her to take things forward,’ official spokesperson of the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, Randhir Jaiswal, told reporters in New Delhi.
External affairs minister Dr S Jaishankar has clearly stated in his suo motu statement in Parliament that the approval for former Prime Minister Hasina to come to India was given at a short notice.
Meanwhile, former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s son Sajeeb Wazed Joy trashed media reports attributing a message to party workers or resignation statement from his mother, that appeared in the Indian media.
‘The recent resignation statement attributed to my mother published in a newspaper is completely false and fabricated,’ Joy said in a short message through X, formerly known as Twitter.
‘I have just confirmed with her that she did not make any statement either before or since leaving Dhaka,’ he added.
Foreign affairs adviser Touhid Hossain on Sunday said Sheikh Hasina resigned, and her resignation letter is with the President.
‘This information has been confirmed. Rest I cannot tell you. Cabinet Division is the final custodian of such resignation. You may know from there tomorrow,’ he told reporters, referring to what he was informed at the Advisory Council meeting.