The visit of Sushma Swaraj has ended quietly compared to the media hype that the country witnessed leading to it. The ruling party wanted desperately to show the people of Bangladesh that the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) government would treat it in the same special way as the Congress government had done. The BNP (Bangladesh Nationalist Party) wanted the contrary - that the visit would show that the BJP government would be different and that the visit would reveal that so as to weaken the ruling party's strength in the politics of the country.
The Indian External Affairs Minister came to Dhaka with an agenda of her own that did not consider the interests of either of the two parties that made desperate efforts to please her and through her, the new government in New Delhi. Sushma Swaraj came to Dhaka to convey a message to the people of Bangladesh that the BJP Government will conduct bilateral relations by putting their interests and the country's sovereignty as indispensable elements of their Bangladesh policy. She also came to Dhaka in pursuit of the new government's policy of close relations with the SAARC (South Asian Association for regional Cooperation) countries that was revealed when the SAARC leaders were invited to the inauguration of Narendra Modi.
Thus in her official consultation with the Bangladesh Foreign Minister, the sticky bilateral issues were set aside. The Bangladesh side just flagged some of the outstanding bilateral issues such as the pending Teesta/LBA deals without making any demand so as not to upset the Indian Minister. The Indian Minister also did not raise the sticky issue of the 20 million alleged Bangladeshis. In her meeting with Sheikh Hasina, Sushma Swaraj assured the Bangladesh Prime Minister that New Delhi will deliver the deals "soon" but did not give any time frame like these issues were not important for the visit.
Nevertheless, the visit has been a very important one. In a quiet, unassuming way, Sushma Swaraj with her trademark "tip" and pleasant demeanour, outlined the parameters within which the BJP government will conduct bilateral relations. These parameters are a major shift from the way the Congress had conducted bilateral relations. Henceforth, New Delhi will not play any favourites and relations will be between country-to-country and government-to-government. This will rule out the special position the Awami League (AL) enjoyed under the Congress Government. By emphasising that the people of Bangladesh will resolve the internal political problems of its politics, New Delhi has underlined that it will not interfere in Bangladesh's politics like the Congress had done for the Awami League. In fact, by stressing that Bangladesh must solve its own political problems, Sushma Swaraj has perhaps unwittingly admitted that such was the case under the Congress Government.
The visit did not just change the parameters, which have been dramatic and substantial. It also revealed New Delhi's view on a major issue with which the AL and BNP are fighting. By meeting Begum Khaleda Zia over the objections of the Awami League, the Indian Foreign Minister established the credibility of the BNP as the main opposition in the country. A week prior to Sushma Swaraj's visit, the UN had recognised the BNP as the main opposition after the faux pas committed by the President's men following his meeting with the UN Secretary General and had urged the AL to negotiate with it for fresh elections. Although Sushma Swaraj did not go to that extent, her meeting with the BNP leader has undermined the ruling party's attempts to sideline the BNP in the politics of the country.
There were other aspects of the visit that revealed that New Delhi does not see the present political situation in Bangladesh the way the AL-led government wants it to. In her speech at the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS), Sushma Swaraj mentioned without any direct reference to Bangladesh that institution-building and tolerance are vital to growth of democracy. Many were quick to see in this a subtle criticism of the way the Awami League has been ruling the country.
The separate press briefings were another aspect of the visit that underlined that New Delhi and Dhaka are on different wavelengths. Dhaka wanted joint press briefing to give the impression to the people of Bangladesh about the thickness of its relations. Indians demanded separate briefings to convey the contrary view, and got it, that the Indian Minister left the MEA's Spokesman to handle. In Bangladesh's case, it was the Foreign Minister who briefed the media.
The media briefing of the Bangladesh Foreign Minster also underlined that the visit did not go the way the AL wanted. The Minister was defensive in the briefing and took pains to explain that Bangladesh has not granted land transit and the permission given to Indian trucks to use Bangladesh road was a humanitarian gesture. The Bangladesh side highlighted the BCIM-EC as an example of India's interest in making Bangladesh the regional connectivity hub that did not draw any response from the Indian Minister. In fact, on connectivity, the Indian Spokesman said it will be all about connecting the people of the two countries thus setting aside Bangladesh's efforts to use the visit to show New Delhi is as committed to Bangladesh's economic development as was the Congress Government.
Sushma Swaraj's visit was therefore largely a goodwill one. Nevertheless, the fact that she chose Bangladesh as the first country to begin her foreign trips underlines that India values its relations with Bangladesh as important. However, she also undertook the trip to reach out to the people of Bangladesh because the blatant interference of the Congress-led government has pushed India's standing in Bangladesh to its lowest ebb ever. Therefore, through the visit, she has laid down new parameters of bilateral relations to assure the people that it respects Bangladesh's sovereignty and its people. There is perhaps another issue that has led the parameters to be changed. India has not particularly liked the AL-government overtures towards China and its total commitment for Asia's march to world dominance under China's leadership. This message of disapproval has been subtly embedded in the way the visit was undertaken.
Therefore on final analysis, the visit of Sushma Swaraj has not gladdened the hearts of the ruling party. The BNP has gained credibility and will be inspired that the BJP Government will not back the AL government anything like the Congress had done which is the cause of its present nightmarish predicament. However, the visit has not failed to gladden the hearts of many Bangladeshis who believe that India has the power to build or destroy Bangladesh. In that context, the visit of Sushma Swaraj has been a visit of hope for the people of Bangladesh because the parameters that she set within which her government will conduct bilateral relations with Bangladesh will help keep Bangladesh on democratic path and help it to return from the path of disaster towards which it is headed for which the outgoing Congress has played a significant role.
The writer is a retired career Ambassador.
© 2024 - All Rights with The Financial Express
