How tensions with Pak, Bangladesh are damaging Hindu-Muslim relations

medium118529261Whoever drew up the schedule for the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy matches is clearly blessed with a mischievous sense of humour, scheduling India’s first two matches against its two estranged neighbours — Bangladesh, with whom it’s in the midst of a mighty diplomatic row, and Pakistan, its old detractor.In the end, it had the better of both. Amen.This column, however, is not about cricket but about how tensions between India and its two Muslim neighbours are affecting Hindu-Muslim relations, which have become a little-noticed collateral casualty of the geopolitical power play between New Delhi, Islamabad and, lately, Dhaka.It’s not only the already fraught Hindu-Muslim relations in India that come under increased pressure every time there’s a provocation from either Pakistan or Bangladesh. Hindus in those countries too feel the heat when politics hots up.Divisive busybodies in the three countries have a field day stoking communal tensions.Until recently, it was only Pakistan we had to contend with. Now there’s Bangladesh, too, to worry about.And, as the saying goes, “bade miyan so bade miyan, chhote miyan subhan allah” (the older one was difficult enough, the younger one is even cannier).Ironically, a country which sacrificed an estimated 3mn people to gain independence from a repressive Pakistan now appears to be “Pakistan-ising” itself with right-wing groups hostile to India driving the agenda.The clock, it seems, is being sought to be turned back as Pakistan seeks to claw back influence in Bangladesh and avenge its humiliation 54 years ago.Fears of an emerging Pakistan-Bangladesh axis against India may not be completely unfounded.Indian Army chief General Upendra Dwivedi has expressed “concern” over reports that a Pakistan Army-ISI delegation recently visited areas in Bangladesh close to the ‘Chicken’s Neck’ or the Siliguri corridor in West Bengal. medium nocaptionhttp://youtu.be/xK_Fx8dOpt8?si=_LK_XFMQ4HL-AQ6iAccording to a TOI report, when asked to elaborate, he said, “I had used the word epicentre of terrorism for a particular country (Pakistan). Now those countrymen, if they go to any other place and they happen to be our neighbour, as far as I’m concerned, I should be concerned about it.”Particularly disturbing is the communal overtone the anti-Sheikh Hasina/Awami League agitation has acquired, resulting in attacks on Hindus.Even if exaggerated, as Bangladesh claims, such incidents have no place in an avowedly secular country born out of a hard struggle against sectarianism.Hindu groups in India, including the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), have held protests outside Bangladesh missions in New Delhi and elsewhere demanding the United Nations’ intervention.Attempts by some to frame the issue as one of “appeasement” of Muslims in India versus persecution of Hindus in Muslim countries are clearly calculated to create mischief.Dhaka has described the anti-Hindu attacks as its internal affair, and has been particularly irritated by the intervention of Hasina, who has accused Bangladesh’s interim leader Muhammad Yunus of perpetrating “genocide” against Hindus and other minorities.New Delhi, in a departure from its usual position that what happens in a sovereign country is an internal affair of that country, has officially expressed concern over Bangladesh’s treatment of Hindus and demanded swift action to ensure their safety.India’s relations with Bangladesh have been steadily deteriorating since Hasina sought refuge here last August after being ousted in a violent people’s revolt amid allegations of corruption and authoritarianism.India’s decision to give her shelter after she was turned down by several Western countries, including America and Britain, has angered Dhaka and it is demanding her extradition to face charges of alleged human rights violations and corruption. medium nocaptionhttp://youtu.be/po9J4gPHy4c?si=SVCg-Kp-c1afrKjVAfter months of silence, minister of state for external affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh admitted in the Rajya Sabha earlier this month that “no response has been conveyed to the Government of Bangladesh”.“The Government of Bangladesh has sought the extradition of former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for offences allegedly committed before she came to India on 5th August 2024. No response has been conveyed to the Government of Bangladesh,” he said in a written reply to CPI(M)’s John Brittas.The problem for India is that international opinion on the issue is mostly with Dhaka — namely that Hasina must be held accountable for what happened on her watch.While not intervening directly, UN officials have called on the two sides to “cooperate and support each other towards ensuring accountability”.In an implicit endorsement of Dhaka’s position, Rory Mungoven, chief of the Asia-Pacific Region of The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), made it clear that “the bottom line is that all those responsible for what happened and what amount to very serious human rights violations and possibly international crimes are held accountable”.India’s reluctance to extradite Hasina is understandable given its emotional ties with her family, but at some point — sooner than later — it will have to decide one way or the other.Either say “no” at the risk of further messing up its relations with Bangladesh at a time when it cannot really afford to have another hostile neighbour breathing down its neck. Or sacrifice an old friend in order to save a crucial relationship for wider strategic reasons.What complicates things for India is that it does have an extradition treaty with Bangladesh which obliges both countries to extradite people who have been “charged, convicted, or wanted for an extraditable offence”.Some in India, however, argue that it has several “exemptions”, which New Delhi could invoke to turn down Bangladesh’s request. medium nocaptionhttp://youtu.be/pbD4TDGHniY?si=nSnPThMqes5FF1Q_Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty, a former Indian high commissioner to Bangladesh, has said that the treaty has “political exception clauses — as well as clauses for fair treatment and safety… unless these conditions are fulfilled, extradition could be denied”.So, it’s now all down to interpretation, whether any of these exceptions apply in the Hasina case. And with both sides bound to interpret the clause differently, an early end to the impasse is unlikely.But, meanwhile, the least India can do to limit the damage is to restrain Hasina from making statements that could make its relations with Bangladesh more difficult than they already are.Some of her statements such as those accusing Yunus of conspiring to kill her and her sister Sheikh Rehana have provoked a strong reaction from Dhaka, which lodged a formal protest against what it said were “false and fabricated” charges.It urged India to take “appropriate measures” to stop her from making “incendiary” remarks.A standard condition of asylum is that the asylum-seeker would refrain from doing anything that is likely to embarrass the host or adversely affect the latter’s relations with another friendly country.Clearly, Hasina is out of line here even if technically she is not an asylum-seeker and is here as a guest.And by defending her unhelpful interventions, New Delhi risks strengthening the Muslim right in Bangladesh. Which will be a gift to both the Muslim and Hindu right in India and could further undermine Hindu-Muslim relations.Beware.Lead illustration: Sandeep AdhwaryuRead more from the author here.