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Dhaka: Intelligence agencies must step back from dictating foreign policy across South Asia, leaving those decisions to elected politicians, asserted Humayun Kabir, foreign affairs adviser to Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman, the party’s joint secretary general for International Affairs.

In an interview with The Wire at the party’s electoral office in Gulshan two days after BNP’s landslide win in the parliamentary elections, Kabir said that it was an “unhealthy culture” for intelligence agencies to get involved in foreign policy decisions.

A Sylhet native with advanced degrees from UK universities, Kabir was in the UK Cabinet Office under Prime Ministers Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak before spearheading BNP’s overseas outreach from London for over 15 years.

Kabir acknowledges that relations between Bangladesh and India have deteriorated significantly, with growing public anger toward New Delhi over its perceived close association with the ousted Sheikh Hasina government. “During the Sheikh Hasina autocratic regime, India’s relationship for 15 years was with Hasina exclusively, not with the people of Bangladesh,” he said, adding that India now needs to take the first step in resetting ties.

Despite the tensions, Kabir views recent outreach from Indian leaders as positive signs. He cited Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s congratulatory call to Tarique Rahman as a move in the right direction.

Here is the interview, verbatim except slight edits for clarity:

There is perceptible anger towards India over its perceived association with Sheikh Hasina. Do you think that sentiment constrains how far the incoming government can go in engaging with New Delhi? Does India need to take the first step in resetting ties?

Yes, I mean, it is certainly a challenging issue. During the Sheikh Hasina autocratic regime, India’s relationship for 15 years was with Hasina exclusively, not with the people of Bangladesh. So, I feel that there is an anger, a hatred towards India that has developed. Young people and the general public saw Sheikh Hasina “sell” India to the people as a force bailing her out from her crimes all the time. She frequently used India’s name.

It has caused perceptional damage to India. In a way, India now has to take the first step to reset, recognising that Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League no longer exist in Bangladesh. They must be constrained and not be seen to be complicit with Sheikh Hasina’s terrorist activities aimed at destabilising Bangladesh. Sheikh Hasina is a terrorist. After killing several thousand people, she fled the country and is now residing in Indian sovereign territory. She is being allowed to........

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