Staff Reporter :
Law Minister Anisul Haque dismissed the possibility of diplomatic crises with certain countries in the post election period in the country.
“I won’t say there is a crisis. I will call it a concern in your minds, and that’s what I will say – that there could have been a diplomatic crisis. However, after the election, you have also seen that there is no possibility of such diplomatic issues,” he said in reply to a question of the journalists in the Secretariat on Monday.
The law minister came up with the remarks after a meeting with Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Kumar Verma.
Following the 12th parliamentary election, several nations have praised the government led by the Awami League.
However, Western countries, including the US, UK, Canada, and the EU, have not shifted their position on the election, maintaining that it was not conducted in a free and fair manner.
Instead, they have called upon the government to conduct an impartial investigation into the election-related violence and have criticised the widespread arrest of opposition leaders. Recently the US and the EU met the Foreign Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud in the Foreign Ministry and stated that they wanted to work with the government in the days to come.
The Awami League government has consistently emphasised that the willingness of Western countries to collaborate with Bangladesh is seen as an endorsement of the election. The election held on January 7 experienced a low voter turnout and was marked by irregularities and occasional violence.
Many party candidates boycotted the election, alleging that it was manipulated by the ruling party.
The main opposition party, BNP, along with some Islamic and left-leaning parties, chose to boycott the polls, asserting that the election would not be fair and impartial under a partisan government.
After the election, Western countries have refrained from endorsing it as free and fair. Speculation is rife in both political and public circles that diplomatic relations of Bangladesh with the West may deteriorate in the coming days.
Meanwhile, asked about the meeting agenda, law minister said, “In the context of development partnership with India as a neighboring country, the application of law and clarification of legal provisions within the framework of development partnership are always necessary.”
“The legal framework, some of which have been in place for a long time, and the changes that have occurred in India, raise the possibility of similar changes in Bangladesh,” he continued.
The minister also discussed the legal reforms that have taken place in Bangladesh and whether there is a possibility of similar changes in India, emphasising that such discussions are ongoing and were addressed even Monday.
In addition, the minister mentioned, “Today, we have engaged in a special discussion on a particular subject, which is the National Judicial Academy in Bhopal, India. Some 1206 judicial officers from our country are undergoing training there and approximately two thousand will be trained.”
“We are planning to establish a National Judicial Academy in our country, and we will need the expertise of India in this regard. We have had extensive discussions on these matters, and the dialogue has proven to be highly fruitful,” he said.
