Pakistan fuelling religious extremism in Bangladesh to avenge 1971 defeat, claims Sindhi leader

Berlin: Shafi Burfat, Chairman of the Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz (JSMM), on Thursday accused Pakistan of engineering religious hatred in Bangladesh to push the country towards civil war and fragmentation.

He described it as a conspiracy aimed at seeking revenge for Pakistan’s historic defeat during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War.

Burfat alleged that Bangladesh’s interim government’s chief advisor Muhammad Yunus, “installed and backed by global powers”, is governing not through a democratic mandate but through “external patronage”, reflecting an arrangement shaped by international strategic interests rather than the will of the Bangladeshi people.

He claimed that in collusion with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Yunus is deliberately working to delay elections by fostering religious extremism within Bangladesh and spreading hatred against Hindus and India.

“This strategy is aimed at prolonging his grip on power by dividing the Bangladeshi people along Hindu–Muslim lines. This is not an internal phenomenon but a calculated conspiracy orchestrated by Pakistan. Pakistan seeks revenge for its historic defeat at the hands of the Bengali nation in 1971. To achieve this, it is pushing Bangladesh toward religious extremism and terrorism to destabilise, fragment, and weaken the country,” Burfat posted on X.

According to the Sindhi leader, the Pakistani military establishment and the terror group ISI are actively inciting the radical Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami and other extremist religious groups inside Bangladesh against India.

He asserted that the Pakistani military and the ISI are once again exploiting religious forces in Bangladesh, just as they did in 1971, pushing them into playing a treasonous role against Bangladeshis.

“The consequences of this conspiracy are deeply alarming. It will not only weaken and fracture Bangladesh but will also fuel the spread of religious extremism and terrorism across the region. As a result, regional peace, political stability, and economic development will be placed under severe threat, pushing South Asia toward greater insecurity and long-term instability,” Burfat stated.

The Sindhi leader urged the United Nations and the international powers to take serious notice of Pakistan’s “reckless, destabilising, and rogue role” in the current situation.

He said that the global community’s attention must be urgently drawn to the deteriorating conditions in Bangladesh.

“At present, Pakistan, acting on signals and encouragement from global powers, is irresponsibly attempting to use Bangladesh as a proxy, placing a ‘gun on Bangladesh’s shoulder’ to provoke and confront India. In doing so, Pakistan is displaying dangerous negligence and strategic adventurism,” he added.

Burfat stated that in an effort to “sabotage the democratic process” in Bangladesh, Pakistan is actively seeking to extend the tenure of the “imposed” Muhammad Yunus-led interim government by fomenting chaos, unrest, and the conditions for internal conflict and civil war.

IANS