“Today, political Islam is thriving in Dhaka, undermining India’s struggle for protection values,” said Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
Guwahati
The creation of Bangladesh after the end of the war with Pakistan in 1971 was not a diplomatic victory for India.
He said India wasted its strategic advantage on several charges during its birth in Bangladesh. These include no corridor wider than the “chicken neck”, a narrow zone in the Siliguri region of West Bengal, connecting the northeast of the unfavorable northeast to the country’s mainland and not ensuring easy access to the Chittagong port.
He also said India’s leadership in 1971 failed to address the issue of immigration in Bangladesh.
“India’s military victory in 1971 was decisive and historic. It lost Pakistan among the two and gave birth to Bangladesh. But despite the amazing battlefield success of our soldiers, India’s political leaders failed to get lasting strategic gains.”
“Bangladesh’s creation is often called diplomatic victory, but history tells a different story,” he said.
The chief minister said India supported secular Bangladesh, but by 1988, Islam was declared a state religion. “Political Islam is now thriving in Dhaka, undermining the values that India has created for its protection,” he said.
He added: “Hindu once had 20% of the population of Bangladesh, which has dropped below 8%. Systematic discrimination and violence continue to exist – a shameful reality that India has largely ignored.”
Despite military dominance, India has failed to address the vulnerability of the Siliguri Corridor by not retaining a part of North Bangladesh.
Population impact
“There is no agreement yet to require illegal immigrants from Bangladesh to return. As a result, Assam, Bangladesh and the northeast are all facing unchecked demographic changes, triggering social and political unrest,” the CM said.
He lamented that India did not secure access to the strategic Chittagong port in Bangladesh. “Fifty years later, despite the birth of a country through blood and sacrifice, the northeast is still inland.”
The chief minister also noted that for decades, Bangladesh has been the basis of anti-Indian insurgency groups that exploited the vacuum that India failed to close in 1971.
“India’s military victory in 1971 did not match strategic vision. The new regional order could have been reduced to a unilateral act of generosity. If Mrs. Indira Gandhi was alive today, the state would have questioned her unfortunate victory in winning the decision of our armed forces. Our armed forces won the creation of Mandeladesh.
Civilian volunteers
All Bodo Student Union (ABSU) said it will send 10,000 Bodo youths as civilian volunteers to provide any assistance on the India-Pakistan border.
ABSU President Dipen Boro and Secretary-General Khanin Basumatary said the union guaranteed similar support to the government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee during the 1999 Kargil conflict.
They said that after proper training, these young people will be sent to state responsibilities.
The union also announced the postponement of its 57th annual meeting due to tensions between India and Pakistan following the terrorist attacks in India and Pakistan. “At this critical moment, ABSU stands with the state and is ready to protect the integrity and sovereignty of the country,” they said.
publishing – May 11, 2025 at 08:01 pm ist
