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India for 'maximum parties' in polls

Indian foreign secretary tells senior journos; meets Hasina, Khaleda, Ershad

Diplomatic Correspondent
India wants the participation of a "maximum" number of parties in a peaceful and violence-free election in Bangladesh, Indian Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh told journalists yesterday, ending her 24-hour whirlwind Dhaka tour.
She held meetings with Prime Minister result, if Singh was Sheikh Hasina and opposition leader could be known about the messages she conveyed to the two leaders.
Singh had separate tete-a-tete with Hasina and Jatiya Party chief I IM Ershad, but Khaleda declined to have any one-to-one meeting.
The BNP chief instead met the Indian top diplomat in the presence of party leaders. As a SEE PAGE 11 COL 1
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earning any exclusive message for Khaleda, she could not share it with her.
Ershad, after his meeting with Singh, told journalists that the Indian foreign secretaty advised him to participate in the election, saying that if he boycotted the polls, it would see the rise of the fundamental group Jamaat-Shibir, which would come to power.
The claim, however, could not be verified.
Meanwhile, during an interaction at Sonargaon Hotel in the evening, when senior journalists asked Singh if India wanted an inclusive election, she said, "Yes."
She then went on to add: "Well, any election should be held with maximum participation of parties. We want to see a result which is acceptable to the people of Bangladesh."
After Singh's meeting with Khaleda around 5:00pm, Shamsher Mobin Ghowdhury, adviser to the BNP chairperson, told reporters that India wanted a continuation of the democratic process and stability in Bangladesh.
"Stability in Bangladesh is needed in the interest of India and the region as a whole," he quoted Singh as saying at the meeting at Khaleda's Gulshan residence.
Singh met Hasina at the Prime Minister's Office at 12:30pm first briefly with delegations of the two sides present, and then for a one-to-one meeting that lasted about an hour.
Abul Kalam Azad, the PM's press secretary, told journalists that the Indian foreign secretary discussed various issues concerning bilateral interests, particularly the alleviation of poverty from the region.
A highly placed source, claiming to have an insight into the talks, told this correspondent that Singh had asked Hasina to go for a compromise with the opposition parties in the interest of a free and fair election.
The source added that Singh sought some options, which she wanted to convey to Khaleda so that the two major parties could resolve the crisis over the holding of the general election, scheduled for Januaty5.
However, it could not be learnt if the PM gave Singh any offer or options to be conveyed to Khaleda.
Singh, who also met Foreign Minister Abul Hasan Mahmood Ali and Foreign Secretary
Shahidul Haq, explained to editors and senior journalists India's interest in Bangladesh.
She said India's interest here was to support the democratic process and see a stable, prosperous and independent Bangladesh. "These are the broad parameters of what our interest is."
She claimed that she had conveyed this message to all in Bangladesh.
On a question about the election, she said she was aware that the authorities had announced the election date, and hoped that the election would reflect the aspirations of the people of Bangladesh and that it would be free, fair and peaceful.
"This is an important time for Bangladesh. The people of Bangladesh like anywhere in the world deserve the right to choose their elected representatives freely and fairly," she told journalists.
"You have to have that election in order to build the institutions of democracy."
Singh said India respected the sovereignty of Bangladesh and did not interfere in its internal affairs.
Referring to the ongoing violence, she said violence had no place in democracy and India wanted to see a peaceful Bangladesh.
Earlier, during the meeting with the PM and the foreign minister, Singh said India was sincere about resolving the pending issues, particularly the ratification of the Land Boundary Agreement, sources said.
Expressing deep gratitude to the Awami League government, Singh told the foreign minister that India was grateful for Bangladesh's support for India's security and hoped that Bangladesh would continue its cooperation in this regard.
In her meeting with the Bangladesh foreign secretaty in the evening, they discussed various bilateral issues, including the progress made in different areas of cooperation, said a press release of the foreign ministty.
They expressed satisfaction over the progress and renewed their resolve to continue engagements at different levels. They also agreed to hold the next round of Foreign Office Consultations at a mutually convenient date.
Singh was accompanied by senior officials of the Indian government, the press release added.