‘Delhi may back Dhaka if issue at int’l forum’
Govt unlikely to respond to Turkey
PTI
India is likely to back Bangladesh if the issue of execution of Salauddin Quader Chowdhury and Ali Ahsan Muhammad Mujahid was taken to any multilateral or international forum, reports PTI. As per governments assessment in New Delhi, fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami has been trying to whip up tension in Bangladesh after hanging of the two leaders and there was no basis to conclude that terror outfit Islamic State was present in that country though it is witnessing rising violent acts, it says.
India was supportive of Bangladesh governments decision to bring to justice to those allegedly involved in war crimes and will throw its weight behind Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina if any country takes the matter to any international forum, sources said. Our Diplomatic Correspondent reports: The government is not going to respond to Turkeys reaction to the executions as it did in case of Pakistan because the wordings of the statements are different as well as the significance of the countries.
As of now, it is highly unlikely that we are going to respond to Turkeys statement on the same manner. The wordings are different and the significance of both the countries to us is also different, a foreign ministry senior official told The Independent yesterday.
In response to the remarks of the spokesperson of the foreign ministry of Pakistan, the foreign ministry summoned Pakistans High Commissioner in Dhaka Shuja Alam and registered a strong protest. Acting Foreign Secretary Mizanur Rahman also handed over a strongly-worded note verable to the envoy. Nothing like this will happen at this point, the official said regarding the Turkey statement.On Sunday, Turkish Foreign Ministry issued a press release expressing its concern over the executions and called for abolishing death penalty as soon as possible. We have learned with sadness that the death sentences given to Ali Ahsan Muhammad Mujahid, Secretary General of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, and Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, former MP from Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and former Minister, by the Bangladesh International Crimes Tribunal have been carried out, said the release posted on the website of the Turkish Foreign Ministry.
It is a cause of concern that although they had apologised to the President by using their legal rights, their wishes have been rejected and that the practice of capital punishment is still being continued, it said. As a country having abolished the death sentence, Turkey maintains its belief that the injuries of the past cannot be healed through such methods. We consider that there is a need also in the brotherly country Bangladesh for another method to replace as soon as possible capital punishment, which would better serve the purposes of social reconciliation, the statement added. Pointing to the statement, the Bangladesh foreign ministry official said that the Turkey wording was much more different than that of Pakistans. Turkey accepted the trial. But, Ankara is opposed to death penalty as it has abolished the death penalty, the official said, adding that country-wise Turkey and Pakistan are not same to Bangladesh.
