India desperate to 'point a finger at Pakistan' over Bangladesh crisis

Bangladesh's military was in complete control of the country on Tuesday after mass protests forced former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, a close friend of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to resign and flee to India.

The Modi government has granted Sheikh Hasina an interim stay following the collapse of her government. During this period, India will offer comprehensive logistical support as Hasina pursues asylum in the UK, Daily Sun reported. Her stay in India is approved only temporarily, pending her relocation to Britain.

As the tense situation keeps on unfolding in the neighbouring country, the stunned Indian leaders and officials were finding it hard to believe that all-powerful Hasina government will be dislodged in no time.

As the dust is slowly settling, Indian leaders were trying to establish as to what went wrong and where. In their search, they did not forget to lay their suspicions on their arch-foe – Pakistan.

Indian government called an urgent all parties meeting on Tuesday to ponder over the crisis in Bangladesh and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar briefed the leaders on the latest developments.

During the brain-storming, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi asked the minister whether there was any external or foreign power, specifically Pakistan, involved in the crisis in Bangladesh.

The minister responded that it was too early to talk about external influence. Rahul Gandhi then suggested that there should be a "medium and long-term strategy".

Jaishankar also apprised the opposition leaders attending the all parties meeting of the government’s talks with Sheikh Hasina. According to news agency PTI, Jaishankar said that Sheikh Hasina is currently in shock and the government is giving her time to stabilize before talking to her. In the meeting, the foreign minister also said that India has assured help to Sheikh Hasina and has also given her time to plan for the future.

Along with this, PTI sources told that while briefing the leaders of political parties in Parliament House, Jaishankar also said that India has spoken to the army chief of Bangladesh to ensure the safety of more than 10,000 Indian students living there. Responding to questions from various leaders including opposition leader Rahul Gandhi in the Lok Sabha, the Foreign Minister did not deny the role of foreign governments for the coup and the current situation in Bangladesh, but stressed that the situation is very volatile and the government is keeping an eye on it. He said, the situation is changing every moment.

India 'deeply concerned'

Jaishankar told parliament on Tuesday he was "deeply concerned till law and order is visibly restored" in neighbouring Bangladesh, a day after the ouster of prime minister Sheikh Hasina.

Jaishankar also gave the first official confirmation Hasina was in India where she fled to on Monday as protesters stormed her palace. "We ... will naturally remain deeply concerned till law and order is visibly restored," Jaishankar said.

New Delhi has kept a wary eye on the fall of Hasina, who pursued a delicate balancing act of enjoying support from India while maintaining strong relations with China.

"In the last 24 hours, we have also been in regular touch with the authorities in Dhaka," Jaishankar added.

Hasina fled Bangladesh on Monday by helicopter to India, arriving at a military airbase near New Delhi. A top-level source said she wanted to "transit" on to London, but calls by the British government for a UN-led investigation into "unprecedented levels of violence" put that into doubt.

"Our understanding is that after a meeting with leaders of the security establishment, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina apparently made the decision to resign," Jaishankar said.

"At very short notice, she requested approval to come for the moment to India. We simultaneously received a request for flight clearance from the Bangladesh authorities. She arrived yesterday evening in Delhi."

India shares a more than 4,000-kilometre (2,545-mile) border with Bangladesh.

"Our border guarding forces have also been instructed to be exceptionally alert in view of this complex situation", Jaishankar said.