“If Bangladesh is destabilised, the fire of resistance will spread beyond borders. Since you are housing those who destabilise us, we will give refuge to the separatists of seven sisters too,” Abdullah said, using a common reference for seven states in India’s northeast.
“I want to say clearly to India that if you shelter forces who do not respect Bangladesh’s sovereignty, potential, voting rights and human rights, Bangladesh will respond.”
His remarks were seen as particularly provocative in India because Delhi is sensitive about security in its northeast due to insurgencies, the region’s porous borders and its strategic location between Bangladesh, Myanmar and China.
Abdullah accused “vultures”, whom he did not name, of trying to exert control over Bangladesh despite the country having been independent for 54 years. He also called for resistance rallies on Victory Day on Tuesday, which marked the defeat of Pakistan’s military in Bangladesh’s liberation war in 1971.
