Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson says‘India respects Bangladesh’s democracy’

India always respects the democratic practices in Bangladesh, and people will decide what will happen in their country, Arindam Bagchi, spokesperson at the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), said on Monday.

“I think you should decide what would happen in your country. Why is the question about one party, not other parties? At the end of the day, we respect the democracy of Bangladesh. Our job is to maintain relations between India and Bangladesh. The current government has closer relations,” he said at a meeting in New Delhi.

The MEA spokesperson interacted with Bangladeshi journalists at Jawaharlal Nehru Bhawan in the Indian capital.

Regarding bilateral relations, Bagchi mentioned that India has focused on the economic relationship and connectivity of the two countries to strengthen people-to-people contacts.

“I would like to mention that economic relationships and connectivity are two important issues in people-to-people relationships in Bangladesh and India. That is forward-looking and leads to long-term prosperity. We strongly focus on deepening the economic growth of our two nations,” he said.

Regarding a question on India’s relationship with a party in Bangladesh, Arindam Bagchi considered the existence of such a perception.

Arindam Bagchi was accompanied by MEA Bangladesh-Myanmar department joint secretary Smita Pant and director Nabanita Chakrabarti.

Maasranga Television editor-in-chief Rejoanul Haq, DBC Television Editor Pranab Saha, Ekattor Television Head of News Shakil Ahmed, and News24 Television Executive Editor Rahul Raha were among the Bangladesh delegation.

In reply to a question about the caretaker government, Bagchi mentioned that there is no point about this issue in the Indian Constitution.

“Bangladesh will act as per their rules in the Constitution,” he said.

Regarding the relations between Bangladesh and China, Bagchi mentioned that there is no comment from the Indian side as the strategic partnership is an internal issue for Bangladesh.

“Bangladesh will choose who will be its partner in its development. However, the bilateral relationship between Bangladesh and India is not comparable to others,” he said.

There are 46 development projects running in Bangladesh in cooperation with India, according to joint secretary Smita Pant.

“India has implemented several projects in the communication sector between the two countries. The Chilahati-Haldibari rail link and the rail and river link with Tripura are significant. India has done a lot in the development sector in the last two years,” she said.

Pant mentioned that the economic activities of North Eastern India have been flourishing over the years, and Bangladeshi businessmen can take advantage of opportunities there.

Later on Monday afternoon, a Bangladesh delegation visited the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Election Commission of India. The delegation took part in a session with Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar.

During the meeting, India CEC Rajiv Kumar mentioned that the democracy in India has been deepening day by day amid a couple of challenges.

“The parties’ existence depends on participating in the election. Their recognition is also dependent on the percentage of votes they achieve in the polls. It is similar to all state parties and national parties. There is no benchmark (of voter turnout) in democracy,” he said.