Opposition soft on India: Hasina

DHAKA, MAY 7. Another dimension was added to the India factor in Bangladesh politics with the Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, accusing the Opposition of being soft on the country's neighbour in the west, contrary to its rhetoric.

Ms. Hasina said on Sunday that her opponents ``are eloquent against India in their speeches but appease India''.

She took all credit for the speedy resolution of the crisis triggered by recent border clashes with India.

``Usually in such national crisis all get united voluntarily, but I did not get any cooperation from the opposition,'' Ms. Hasina said. ``Since the Awami League is in power, it could solve the problem speedily and peacefully. Had there been any other party in government, they would have messed up the matter,'' she said.

Refuting opposition criticism, Ms. Hasina asked what previous regimes of General Zia, Gen Ershad and Ms. Khaleda Zia had done to resolve the problem of Pyrdiwah in more than two decades.

``You call us collaborators of India, what you have done? Why didn't you capture Pyrdiwah? Where were you sleeping at that time?''

Criticising the opposition campaign colouring the Awami League as pro-India, Ms. Hasina said it was the Awami League that protected territorial integrity when the opposition kept mum. ``When the problem is settled, the opposition is talking so much.''

During her visit to New Delhi as Prime Minister, Begum Zia signed a joint communique with India and it was the Bangladesh National Party (BNP) Government that endorsed the push-in issue, allowing the Indian authorities to deport Bengali- speaking Indian nationals to Bangladesh, Ms. Hasina said.

The past BNP Government unilaterally brought down the import duties on Indian goods from 300 to 400 per cent to 30 to 40 per cent without any reciprocal arrangements and giving any protection to local industrial products, she said.

``My government, on the other hand, is now in negotiation to get duty- free access of 25 Bangladeshi export items to Indian market,'' the United News of Bangladesh was reported as saying.

After assuming power, the Prime Minister said, she had settled the long-running issue of sharing of the Ganges waters thereby halting desertification in northern region and removing salinity in southern districts.

Besides, she said, her government has convinced India to extend the time of movement through Tinbigha corridor from every alternate hour to dawn-to-dusk.

Ms. Hasina said some 150 km along the frontier remained undemarcated when she took office, now it is only 6.5 km that is to be demarcated and discussions are on for exchanging enclaves and lands under adverse possession.

She questioned why the previous governments failed to complete demarcation of border and exchange of enclaves between the two countries.

The Prime Minister said when Ms. Khaleda Zia was in power, two BDR men were killed but they did not confer any honour like ``Bir Shrestha'' on the slain soldiers.

On the contrary, Ms. Hasina said, she had brought the families of the three BDR men killed in the recent clashes to Dhaka, consoled them and gave financial assistance but the leader of the opposition even could not show any sympathy for the bereaved families or pay a single farthing as aid.

- UNI

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