Bangladesh version of Modi-Yunus meeting 'malicious'

Colombo: A Bangladeshi version of a meeting between chief adviser Muhammad Yunus and Prime Minister Narendra Modi was "mischievous and politically motivated", especially the aspects relating to attacks on minorities and Dhaka's request for extraditing former premier Sheikh Hasina, people familiar with the matter said on Saturday.

Yunus' press secretary Shafiqul Alam in a Facebook post on Saturday said the chief adviser raised with Modi in the meeting in Bangkok, Bangladesh's request for the extradition of Hasina and the "response was not negative".

The characterisation of the Indian prime minister's remarks regarding the relationship with Yunus and the previous Bangladesh government were "inaccurate", the people cited above said on Dhaka's official readout on the meeting and the Facebook post by Alam.

In his post, Alam claimed that Modi had said: "We saw her (Hasina’s) disrespectful behaviour towards you (Yunus).

The people cited above said Modi had responded to various issues raised by Yunus by saying that these were best discussed by the foreign ministers of the two countries.

PM Modi spoke of the progress in our bilateral relationship since 2014 and characterised it as a deep friendship between our societies and peoples, they said.

The people said the prime minister also mentioned the importance of elections as the basis of legitimacy in any democracy and that a continued procrastination in this regard would damage the chief advisor's reputation

"The Bangladeshi contention that attacks on minorities were a social media concoction was dismissed as being in contradiction of facts on the ground," said one of the people.

There is no basis for the observation made by the press secretary on the extradition request, they said, adding such attempts call into question both the "seriousness and the good faith" of the interim government.

New Delhi has no far not responded to the request made by Bangladesh's interim government last year for the extradition of Hasina.

Hasina has been living in New Delhi since she fled Dhaka in August last year in the face of a massive anti-government protest.

In the meeting in Bangkok on Friday, Modi conveyed to Yunus India’s deep concerns about the safety of Bangladesh's Hindus and other minorities.

"The prime minister urged that rhetoric that vitiates the environment is best avoided," an Indian readout of the meeting said.

PM Modi underlined India’s concerns related to the safety and security of minorities in Bangladesh, including Hindus, and expressed his expectation that the government of Bangladesh would ensure their security, including by thoroughly investigating the cases of atrocities committed against them.