Official Indian sources have often accused Bangladesh of giving sanctuary to anti-India insurgents and encouraging jehadi militancy to spread. Bangladesh's present ruler, Khaleda Zia, is reputed to be soft on militancy. That makes a recent event in Bangladesh, barely analysed, all the more intriguing.
On August 17, an estimated 460 low-yield bombs went off in 63 of Bangladesh's 64 districts within the same half-hour. But only two persons were killed. This occurred while Khaleda was on a crucial visit to Beijing. She cut short her visit and rushed back to Dhaka.
According to Dhaka's Daily Star, the Bangladesh Police Special Branch found that the attacks were planned in mid-April. The operation was funded by a Kuwait-based organisation, Revival of Islamic Heritage Society (RIHS), and by an imam of a British mosque, Maulana Ataur Rahman. Rahman arrived in Bangladesh on the day of the attacks. He left after three days. Outside the country, Rahman conferred with two chiefs of banned Bangladesh militant organisations. Meanwhile, Bangladesh intelligence agencies have recommended banning the Bangladesh chapter of rihs for financing militants.
The questions arise: Why the attacks? Who was behind them? Two facts are glaring. First, after 460 explosions within the same half-hour spread across the entire country, only two people died. Clearly the intention was not destruction. The intention obviously was to convey a message: This is what we can do, so beware!
Secondly, the timing was significant. Khaleda was in Beijing. She was forced to cut short her visit. According to conjecture in Indian defence intelligence, the Chinese seek two ports for operations in Bangladesh. These would give them strategic leverage. In return, Bangladesh wants a nuclear reactor. Since Bangladesh has substantial gas reserves, it is believed that Dhaka wants to become the third nuclear power in South Asia. If the bomb attacks were intended to serve as a warning to Khaleda, to abandon her plans, could some unknown western agency have masterminded the operation?
There also seems another, and more likely, possibility. Regardless of Khaleda's encouraging militancy in the early stages, it has now become a Frankenstein's monster ready to turn on its creator. This is a worldwide phenomenon. Even big powers like America, Russia and China have to confront it. The genie once released from the bottle won't go back. On 9/11 there were just 12 terrorist websites. Today there are 4,500. Technology remains neutral between good and evil.
Developments in Bangladesh, therefore, bear close watching.
(Puri can be reached at rajinderpuri2000@yahoo.com)
