Bangladesh Protests: Former Indian Diplomat Blames Economic Strain, Political Opportunists
Former Indian Foreign Secretary and ex-Ambassador to Bangladesh, Harsh Vardhan Shringla, has analysed the ongoing crisis in Bangladesh, attributing it to a mix of economic hardship, political opportunism, and possible foreign interference. Shringla emphasised that while the protests ostensibly stem from issues like job quotas, deeper economic problems—including the impact of COVID-19 and the Ukraine conflict—have exacerbated the situation. He suggested that political groups like the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami, as well as foreign actors, may be fueling the unrest to their advantage, contributing to the volatility in Bangladesh.
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~HT.178~PR.152~ED.102~GR.125~
#bangladeshprotests #SheikhMujiburRahmanStatue #MujiburRahmanStatueVandalised #bangladeshnews #sheikhhasina #bangladeshnewsupdate #studentprotest #bangladeshantigovtprotests #bangladeshjobquotaprotest #bangladeshreservation #latestnews #breakingnews
~HT.178~PR.152~ED.102~GR.125~
Transcript
00:00I think sir, there is an army hand behind this entire thing or Ms. Zia is behind this
00:04or some foreign powers are behind this because not long ago Ms. Haseena won the elections,
00:11democratically won the elections.
00:13So how this sudden surge and how this sudden commotion happened there sir?
00:18Well, you know, I have been saying in many of my interactions with the media including
00:25with DNI that, you know, there are underlying factors behind the demonstrations.
00:30On the face of it, it has been the quota issue that the students have put forward.
00:35But there are underlying economic factors.
00:37You know, COVID-19 has hit the Bangladesh economy very hard.
00:41In addition to that, the Ukraine conflict has resulted in spiking the prices of essential
00:47commodities from fuel to food to fertilizers and Bangladesh imports all these items.
00:53They've had a very, very difficult balance of payments situation.
00:58Inflation has gone up, you know, by 17% to 20%.
01:03So all of this is essentially now coming to a situation where, you know, people, especially
01:10younger people are expressing their frustration on the streets.
01:14And so I would also look at it as, you know, an economic factor.
01:20And clearly, of course, as we have always said, opportunists, whether it's the opposition
01:24BNP or it's the Jamaat-e-Islami, which is the radical, you know, pro-Pakistan Islamist
01:31grouping that is very active on the streets, they have joined the protest and they have
01:37actually brought in that violence into the protest.
01:40You cannot rule out the involvement of foreign powers who are inimical to Bangladesh's interests
01:45and frankly to our security interests also.
01:49So definitely, you cannot rule out the fact that certain interests have been fishing in
01:58troubled waters.
01:59But I think that the situation itself was possibly a result of several underlying factors
02:07inherent within the Bangladesh system.
02:20This is the first test of violence.
02:23Don't you dare touch me.
02:33Hey brother, brother, brother.
02:34Don't touch him.
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02:41Don't touch him.
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02:45Don't touch him.
02:46Don't touch him.
02:47Don't touch him.
02:49Hey, brother, brother, brother, don't beat him.
02:59Don't miss out.
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