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Bangladeshis launch ‘India Out’ campaign over New Delhi’s alleged meddling to keep Hasina in power

  • The Bangladeshi opposition claims Hasina’s Awami League has won the past three general elections ‘all because of India’s support’
  • The economic impact is not clear-cut as Bangladesh imports many goods from its neighbour while India’s export base is diversified, an economist says

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Gono Odhikar Parishad, a new opposition party in Bangladesh, leading a rally in Dhaka in support of the ongoing ‘India Out’ campaign, on February 16. Photo: Golam Quddus
Dissidents and political groups opposing the Sheikh Hasina-led government in Bangladesh have launched a boycott of Indian goods, accusing New Delhi of interfering in their domestic affairs, among other charges.
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Members of the groups, based in Bangladesh and outside the country, say that the “India Out” movement has been launched by Bangladeshis with deep-seated resentment of India largely to protest against its “covert and overt activities” to keep Hasina in power.

The campaign is mainly being driven on social media, and hashtags #IndiaOut, #BoycottIndia and #BoycottIndianProducts have been trending on Facebook in recent weeks. Some opposition political groups also took part in rallies on the street in cities, in support of the movement.

Exiled Bangladeshi activist Pinaki Bhattacharya, one of the architects of the India Out campaign said Hasina’s Awami League managed to overwhelmingly win three “one-sided sham” general elections over the past decade, “all because of India’s support”.

“Hasina’s government has long been the beneficiary of Indian interventions in the internal politics of Bangladesh. It comes as no surprise that the anger of the Bangladeshi public, which was previously aimed at the regime of their own nation, is now directed towards India,” Paris-based Bhattacharya told This Week in Asia.

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“The people of Bangladesh have launched this campaign to express their extreme discontent with India.”

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