The Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Friday said that India remained concerned about the deteriorating law and order situation in Bangladesh which further exacerbated after the release of violent extremists who were sentenced for serious crimes. Jaiswal said that India supports stable, peaceful, inclusive Bangladesh where all issues are resolved through democratic means and by holding inclusive and participatory polls.
“We have repeatedly underlined that it is the responsibility of the interim government of Bangladesh to protect the Hindus and other minorities, as well as their properties and religious institutions,” Jaiswal said during the weekly media briefing.
“However, only 1254 incidents out of over 2374 incidents reported from August 5, 2024 to February 16, 2025 have been verified by the police. Further, 98% of these 1254 incidents were deemed ‘political in nature’. We expect Bangladesh to thoroughly investigate and bring all perpetrators of killings, arson and violence to justice without making such distinctions,” he said.
On Development Cooperation with Bangladesh
The MEA spokesperson said that development cooperation is a priority area of India’s relations with the people of Bangladesh.
“The recent security situation and long-standing local issues have affected the pace of implementation of some of these projects. The official discussions therefore focused on rationalising the project portfolio and executing mutually agreed projects in a time bound manner. Subject to obtaining the committed support and pending clearances from the Bangladesh side, we plan to take these projects forward,” he added.
Responding to questions on the safety of minorities, Jaiswal said that it is the responsibility of Bangladesh’s interim government to protect Hindus, other minorities as well as their properties, religious institutions.
