BELOW are two statements for the information of readers. Both relate to Narendra Modi’s reference to the 1971 war during his recent visit to Bangladesh.

One is from the Pakistan Foreign Office spokesman; the other is from Bangladesh Information Minister Hasanal Haq Inu, reflecting the Bangladeshi people’s disinclination to have their race transformed by the Abdalis and Ghauris of Pakistan in the name of Islam.

The Foreign Office spokesman Qazi Khalilullah “reiterated that the people of Pakistan and Bangladesh are bound not only by the strong bonds of religious affinity but also by the history of their struggle for independence against colonial rule.” He further stressed that “Indian attempts to sow seeds of discord between the two brotherly nations of Pakistan and Bangladesh will not succeed.”

Reacting to the Pakistan Foreign Office statement, Bangladesh Information Minister Hasanal Haq Inu asserted, “The Indian prime minister said that India supported the 1971 war of liberation. But this is not tantamount to interference in Pakistan, as New Delhi, as a friendly neighbour, stood by Bangladesh whose independence was proclaimed on March 26, 1971. Therefore, it was support from one country to the other against its fight with a third country (Pakistan).”

He also reiterated the Bangladeshi demand that Pakistan should own up to atrocities committed against the Bangla-speaking people.

S.G. Jilanee

Karachi

Published in Dawn, July 6th, 2015

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