Dhaka: India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj has written to Bangladesh Minister of Foreign Affairs A.H. Mahmood Ali in the aftermath of the Gulshan cafe attack reiterating New Delhi’s support to Dhaka in fighting terrorism.
Sushma also offered on Friday a “comprehensive approach” in fighting terrorism, reported bdnews24.com.
Both President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had condemned the July 1 terror attack on the cafe in which 20 hostages, mostly foreigners and an Indian, were killed. Modi also phoned up Prime MInister Sheikh Hasina.
Sushma reiterated the support in a letter.
“India stands firmly with Bangladesh in this hour of grief and will work shoulder to shoulder with government of Bangladesh against terrorism and to protect our societies from the threat of ideologies of hate, violence, and terror,” she wrote.
“We need to adopt zero tolerance policy and a comprehensive approach in fighting terrorism at all levels,” she said.
Sushma Swaraj said it was particularly “unfortunate that such mindless violence should be perpetrated during the holy month of Ramadan when the minds of true believers would be turned to spiritual pursuits”.
“This has shown us that terrorism has no religion and no faith.”
She said she was “confident that the government of Bangladesh will do its utmost to bring those responsible for this cowardly attack to justice so that such attacks are not repeated in future”. On Thursday, Bangladesh witnessed a fresh attack on the Eid day at Kishoreganj’s Sholakia, in which four persons, including two policemen, were killed.
President Mukherjee in a statement strongly condemned the terrorist attack on the Eid congregation and expressed India’s support to Bangladesh in defeating forces of terror.
“I am shocked and distressed to hear about the terrorist attack in Kishoreganj, Bangladesh, on Thursday on Eid. I condemn the perpetrators of this attack in the strongest of terms,” the President said in a statement here. (IANS)
