There will be no compromise with communal and anti-liberation force -- Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami (BJI) -- for the sake of securities on both ends of the border, according to the source.
As it stands today, the source added, India never compromised with “communal force” Jamaat and it wants to see Jamaat changes its party constitution to become a democratic party by seeking apology for the role it had played during the War of Liberation in 1971.
“If you’re peaceful and stable, it’s good for us. If not it’s not good for either of us,” the source told UNB adding that any instability in Bangladesh will naturally trigger instability in India which is in no way good for any of the two friendly countries.
Though India does not have any specific message for Bangladesh on election issue it, however, made it clear that India does not maintain contact with the party which opposed the creation of Bangladesh and collaborated with Pakistanis, another source in New Delhi said.
BNP forged alliance with Jamaat and came into state power in 2001 though the Election Commission has recently cancelled the registration of Jamaat as a political party.
Asked about India’s views on Jamaat, a diplomatic source in New Delhi said India cannot associate with the parties that are communal. “They (Jamaat) are anti-India and it’s a communal party.”
Sources in the Indian government said India, being the best neighbouring friend of Bangladesh, cannot rapport with a party that dedicated to the causes of Pakistan in Bangladesh.
Jamaat had stood shoulder to shoulder with the Pakistan army during the Liberation War of 1971 when India fought for Bangladeshis against Pakistanis.
India thinks the anti-liberation force in Bangladesh – Jamaat - has yet to change their political ideology that goes against democracy and is still fighting for the Pakistani cause in the sub-continent.
Explaining the objective of Jamaat, the Indian source said they do not believe in democracy but want to establish ‘caliphate’ in Bangladesh and elsewhere around the world.
Ahead of the next national election, there are many speculations about the movement of diplomats stationed in Dhaka though they see it as regular interactions and term Bangladesh election as an internal matter.
“As a democracy, we should meet and interact with all the parties,” said a diplomat mentioning that Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka Harsh Vardhan Shringla has also met all the top leaders of Awami League, BNP, Jatiya Party and Jukto Front in recent weeks.
Asked about India’s message for Bangladesh on election issue, a diplomat told UNB that they have no message as election is a very internal issue of Bangladesh and the citizens of Bangladesh are capable enough to determine their democratic system.
He laid emphasis on strengthening people-to-people contact between the two countries and mentioned that 92 deals have been signed mainly on the areas of high technology, cyber security and nuclear energy between the two countries in the last three years demonstrating futuristic cause.
India wants to see the required conducive climate and situation with political will in place to carry forward the momentum the two countries saw in the last few years.
The bilateral relations between Bangladesh and India have already reached “beyond the strategic partnership” and the ties between the two friendly neighbours deepened on all fronts, including economic, political, trade and investment and cooperation, both Bangladesh and India think.
This could happen as India considers Bangladesh first among its neighbours as part of neighborhood first policy, according to the diplomatic sources.