Date:10/03/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/03/10/stories/2008031055201300.htm

International

Bangladesh Army denies ‘homage’ plan

Haroon Habib

DHAKA: Bangladesh Army headquarters has termed ‘false and fabricated’ some media reports and an editorial that the Army chief, Gen. Moeen U. Ahmed, during his recent visit to India, had stated that Bangladesh would pay homage on March 25 every year to Indian soldiers killed in the 1971 war.

“As a matter of fact,” said an Inter-Services Public Relations release, that “during his India visit, the Army chief didn’t make any such statement formally or informally.”

However, the release said: ‘During the meeting of the two Army chiefs, the Bangladesh Army Chief of Staff recalled India’s cooperation and sacrifice during the country’s war of independence and expressed his gratitude.’

At different meetings during the visit, from February 24-March 1, apart from the entourage of Gen. Moeen, the Bangladesh High Commissioner to India was present.

Referring to reports published in The Hindu on February 26 and Bangladesh Today on February 27 and an editorial published in the Dhaka daily Nayadiganta on March 7, the ISPR said the Army chief was well aware that there was no link of the martyred Indian soldiers with March 25 and March 26 — one, Bangladesh’s Black Day marking the Pakistani genocide in 1971 and the other, the country’s Independence Day. ‘Therefore, such commitment is completely absurd.’

There was no journalist at the Army chief’s meetings and exchange of opinions during the tour. So, there was no scope for collecting such information, it said.