THE Tripartite Agreement signed between Pakistan, India and Bangladesh in April 1974 resolved all the issues including Prisoners of War and Non-Bangla population.
This agreement brought closer together Pakistan and Bangladesh with a recognition accorded by former to later as an independent state.
Later in July 2002, President General Pervaiz Musharraf visited Bangladesh and expressed regret over the human losses during the 1971 Indian led war against Pakistan.
Thereafter, Pakistan-Bangladesh relationship has progressively developed in the positive direction.
Unfortunately, after taking over power in Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina Wajid got closer to India and turned against Pakistan.
During her rule, India and the Awami League Government of Bangladesh orchestrated a massive anti Pakistan campaign against Pakistan.
This toxic campaigning continued until the ouster of Awami League Government of Hasina Wajid in 2024.
The entire campaign was aimed at misleading the world about the role of Pakistan and its military during 1971 Indian aggression against Pakistan.
Practically India has colonized Bangladesh ever since its separation from Pakistan in 1971.
India had total control over the internal and external policies of Bangladesh.
This control was tightened in the two successive eras of Sheikh Hasina Wajid.
While India, especially the BJP led Modi Government and Hasina Wajid led Awami League were busy in the exploitation of Bangladeshi masses, there emerged hatred among the people of Bangladesh.
Since India was the architect of this exploitation of Bangladeshi masses, therefore, there developed anti-India sentiments among the people of Bangladesh.
With the passage of time, these anti-India sentiments converted into the “India Out Campaign”.
This campaign aimed at India to stop interfering into the internal affairs of Bangladesh.
Indeed, India was instrumental in the creation of Bangladesh in 1971.
Thereafter, India constantly managed domestic and external policies of Bangladesh in its favour despite political resistance from some political forces of the country.
As per Bangladeshi media, “The India Out movement seeks global recognition of Bangladesh’s struggle against external manipulation, emphasizing its historical sentiments and the quest for self-determination”.
The rigged Bangladeshi Elections-2024 had provoked the people of Bangladesh against the exploitative Government of Sheikh Hasina Wajid and its Indian perpetrators.
Brad Adams, Director Human Rights Watch of Asia said, “The pre-election period was characterized by violence and intimidation against the opposition, attacks on opposition campaign events and the misuse of laws to limit free speech.
The birth of Bangladesh was marked by the exploitation of anti-Pakistan sentiments orchestrated by India.
In a bid to create a new nation, India worked against the very concept of an ideological state of Pakistan.
The love for Bengali language and culture was exaggerated, creating an identity crisis as West Bengal remained excluded from the newly formed Bangladesh.
The scars of this manipulation continue to linger, sowing the seeds of discontent among the people.
In Bangladesh, Awami League’s pro-India policies are questioned, especially as fellow Muslims face mistreatment, even lynching, at the hands of Hindu mobs in India.
Bangladeshi masses accused India of never being a true friend to Bangladesh, manipulating its political landscape, geopolitics and economic exploitation of its economy.
Ever since 1947, India made all out efforts to create its hegemony in South Asia through coercive means.
In this regard, India conceived a long-term strategy of re-colonizing the regional states of South Asia through a gradual strategic plan.
There were three broad contours of Indian regional hegemonic strategy: a) creating political instability in the targeted state (s) of South Asia, b) creating economic crisis in that state and c) creating conflicts, based on ethnicity, sub-nationalism or religion based clashes.
Indeed, as a successor state of British India, the Indian leadership assumed all the roles of former colonial masters.
Pakistan is the only country which refused to accept the Indian strategy of overpowering South Asia through its hegemonic designs.
The net result was its disintegration in 1971 by provoking ethnic factor and creating hate against the Federation of Pakistan through socio-political unrest in its Eastern Wing (former East Pakistan).
Bangladesh faced Indian onslaught, immediately after 1971 and had just come out from the Indian colonization following the ouster of Hasina Wajid and Awami League Government in August 2024.
As outlined by writer Kathryn Jacques, India totally dominates over the domestic and foreign policies of Bangladesh right from 1975.
Indeed, the ‘turbulent political life and economic woes of Bangladesh’ are part of Indian regional dominance.
It was the people’s movement which ousted Hasina Wajid in August 2024 and she has been in India since then.
Despite rejection of India and Awami League by the people of Bangladesh, New Delhi is hatching conspiracies against the State and society of Bangladesh.
Nevertheless, India is rapidly losing its credibility in South Asia as well as at the global level after its military and diplomatic humiliation at the hands of Pakistan.
In the post, Indian colonization era (since September 2024); Bangladesh and Pakistan have come closer to each other.
There have been many bilateral visits of political leadership, academics, diplomats and military delegations.
As per Professor Dr Moonis Ahmar, Pakistan and Bangladesh are cooperating at multiple levels.
“Back-to-back military and defence-related contacts between Pakistan and Bangladesh following the monsoon revolution indicate a marked degree of qualitative change in relations between the two erstwhile countries, which were united for around 25 years”.
Indeed, there have been positive developments between Islamabad and Dhaka since September 2024; “revival of high-level engagements and initiatives to facilitate trade and travel besides commitments to foster a stable and mutually beneficial partnership”.
— The writer is Professor of Politics and IR at International Islamic University, Islamabad. (drmkedu@gmail.com)
