india vs bangladesh

The relationship between neighbours India and Bangladesh continues to remain frosty more than a month after former prime minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted from power. While Hasina’s stay in India remains an irritant, a recent interview by Bangladesh’s interim leader Muhammad Yunus also took India by surprise. The BBC’s Anbarasan Ethirajan examines where ties stand now.

Sheikh Hasina was seen as pro-India and the two countries enjoyed close strategic and economic ties during her 15-year rule. Her time in power was also beneficial for India’s security, as she cracked down on some anti-India insurgent groups operating from her country and settled some border disputes.

But her presence in India, with no clarity on how long she will stay, complicates the two countries’ efforts to maintain a strong relationship.

That was made clearer last week when, in an interview with news agency Press Trust of India, Yunus urged India to stop Hasina from making any political statements while staying in Delhi.

“If India wants to keep her until the time Bangladesh wants her back, the condition would be that she has to keep quiet,” said Yunus, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate who is currently leading an interim administration after Hasina’s exit.

Yunus may have been referring to a statement released days after Hasina’s arrival which had stoked anger in Bangladesh. She has not issued any public communication since then.