BNP will not tolerate the presence of any Indian insurgents on Bangladesh territory if they come to power, the party's top leader Osman Farruk said.
The advisor to the BNP Chairperson was attending a seminar in Kolkata on terrorism organised by Centre for Research in Indo-Bangladesh Relations (CRIBR), along with BNP leader Moin Khan and Awami league leaders Suranjit Sengupta and Amir Hossain Amu.
“Our leader Begum Khaleda Zia has made it very clear that our soil will not be allowed for use by insurgents operating against India,” the former Education Minister told journalists on the sidelines of the seminar.
When he was told that Khaleda Zia gave India similar assurances in 2001-2 but insurgent groups like the ULFA were very much active in Bangladesh, Farruk said: ” Let us talk of the present. My leader has told us to give this message to all in India that her security concerns will be totally addressed.”
But Farruk said Bangladesh would expect a similar guarantee from India.
“In the past, insurgents in the Chittagong Hill Tracts have been backed by India. We would expect an assurance that would not happen again,” Farruk told bdnews24.com.
He blamed the Awami League for 'mishandling' the Teesta and Land Boundary issues with India.
“They have messed up the whole process, so Bangladesh has got nothing at the end of the day,” he said.
But will a BNP government achieve where Awami league has failed?
Farouk said BNP will drive a bargain and 'only give if we get what we want'. But he did not elaborate, saying it was now up to the Awami League government to salvage anything on the two issues.
“They have completely failed the country”.
Awami League minister Suranjit Sengupta blamed India for failing to keep its commitments on the Teesta and land boundary agreements.
“This will affect the relations between the two countries.”
Other speakers including former BSF chief Prakash Singh called for a comprehensive India-Bangladesh mechanism to combat terrorist activists including a network to monitor 'suspicious money movement'.
Source: Bd news24