Dhaka: On the sidelines of the construction of a grand Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Bangladesh foreign minister AK Abdul Momen said that India should prevent moves that could hurt its historic ties with the neigbouring country. According to Bangladesh commentators, the August 5 inauguration of Ayodhya temple construction could give a new political opportunity to the opponents of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Referring to the temple construction, Momen said that both countries will not let it destroy their relations, however, India should refrain from any development that could hurt its "deep" ties with Bangladesh. Quoting Momen, The Hindu reported, "We will not allow this (temple construction) to hurt ties but I would still urge that India should not allow any development that can fracture our beautiful and deep relationship. This is valid for both our countries and I would say both sides should work in such a way so that such disruptions can be averted."
The minister also reportedly said that all sections of the society in both the countries had an obligation towards fostering a good relationship and ensuring that the ties remained intact as the government alone cannot deliver on such matters. The Minister also defended a telephonic conversation between Sheikh Hasina and Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan last week and said that there was nothing unusual that took place in the discussion and reiterated that the call was merely a matter of courtesy.
Experts in Bangladesh are of the opinion that India was moving towards a "two-nation theory" and that the temple construction, though an internal matter concerning India, will have an emotional impact on the people of the neighbouring country. However, the foreign minister blamed "vested interests" in trying to create a rift between the two countries by highlighting a series of developments in Dhaka. He said that Bangladesh was in support of regional peace and expects dialogue with all.
Referring to Sheikh Hasina's conversation with her Pakistani counterpart, Momen asked that why should there be any problem if Pakistan called Bangladesh, and further went on to accuse the media of exaggerating reports on the call. He said both the leaders discussed the Covid-19 pandemic, whereas Pakistan said that Imran Khan had raised the Kashmir issue during the call. However, Bangladesh has maintained silence over the Kashmir issue.
