Bangladesh army seeks India’s help

NEW DELHI: Ever since the military-backed regime took over the caretaker government in Bangladesh, there has been a marked change in the Bangladesh army’s attitude to India. Earlier, the army had been cool towards India, much of the antagonism harping back to the time when the Bangladesh military were part of the Pakistan armed forces.

Now, the military is keen to mend fences and army chief Lt General Moeen U Ahmed is here for the first high-level military to military talks with his Indian counterpart General Deepak Kapoor. “I propose to usher in a new era of close cooperation between the two armies,” the visiting army chief said on Monday. He spoke after being ceremonially welcomed with a guard of honour.

The general is here to get the Indian political establishment to advise Sheikh Hasina of the Awami League and Khaleda Zia of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party not to take part in the national elections scheduled for later this year. He met foreign minister Pranab Mukherjee and is also scheduled to call on PM Manmohan Singh.

Bangladesh’s political situation as well as India’s security worries came up for discussions. The caretaker regime wants India’s help to get the two political leaders bow out gracefully. Strong-arm tactics to frighten them off with corruption and murder cases have so far not been successful. Mukherjee’s response is not known. The chief will also call on defence minister AK Antony and national security adviser MK Narayanan.

g_seema@dnaindia.net