Indian envoy meets Bangladesh officials; Dhaka suspends consular services at Agartala mission  

Bangladesh on Tuesday summoned the Indian envoy to its Foreign Office while announcing the suspension of consular services at its mission in Agartala, a day after the premises were breached by protesters over the arrest of a Hindu monk in the neighbouring country.

There was drama too at a court in Chattogram, where monk Chinmoy Krishna Das' bail plea was to be heard. But no lawyer appeared for him, and his supporters later claimed that his advocates are under threat.

The bail hearing in this sedition case will now take place on January 2.

Tuesday's developments marked another low in ties between the two countries following the ouster of Sheikh Hasina as prime minister in August. India has been expressing concern over Hindus and other minorities being targeted in Bangladesh under the interim government of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus.

The issue also figured in Indian Parliament on Tuesday and the British House of Commons a day earlier.

New Delhi earlier called the breach at the Agartala mission “deeply regrettable”. Tripura Police said seven people have been arrested and action taken against four policemen over the incident. Bangladesh had said its flag was desecrated.

Emerging from the meeting with acting Bangladesh foreign secretary Riaz Hamidullah in Dhaka, Indian envoy Pranay Verma said Delhi wanted to build a “constant stable, constructive relationship” and no single issue should stand as a barrier to bilateral ties.

“We are willing to engage with the interim government of Bangladesh,” he told reporters.

Earlier, Bangladesh's Law Affairs Adviser Asif Nazrul asked New Delhi to reassess its ties with Bangladesh after the ouster of Sheikh Hasina.

“We believe in a friendship based on equality and mutual respect. While Sheikh Hasina's government followed a pro-India policy to cling to power without elections, India must realise that this is not Sheikh Hasina's Bangladesh,” he wrote on Facebook.

Tensions between the two neighbours have simmered since August 5, when Hasina fled to India in the face of large-scale anti-government protests led by students. They aggravated further with the arrest of the Hindu leader last week.

The mission in Tripura, a state which borders Bangladesh, on Tuesday announced the suspension of visa and consular services “until further notice”.  Md Al-Ameen, the first secretary there, cited “security reasons”.

In Bangladesh, there was heavy security around the Chattogram court ahead of the anticipated bail hearing. Some lawyers were seen holding a protest on the premises.

Das was not brought to the court.