Police deny permission for Awami League-affiliated seminar in Delhi

Delhi Police has denied permission for an international seminar in the Indian capital New Delhi, where speakers affiliated with the Awami League will participate. The organizers have been informed that permission was not granted for the event due to some 'controversy'.

The seminar was scheduled to be held from 6 pm to 8:30 pm on Saturday (August 29) at the Foreign Correspondents' Club (FCC) auditorium in New Delhi. The organizers had requested the Delhi Police to ensure the necessary security for the smooth organization of the event. However, the permission was not granted in the end.

Seminar organized jointly

The international seminar was organized by the Foreign Correspondents' Club (FCC) in New Delhi. The event was organized jointly with the Belgium-based organization Hand in Hand Foundation.

The topic of the seminar was ‘Europe and Asia: From Dialogue to a Partnership’. The event was supposed to discuss various issues including mutual relations, partnership and development between Europe and Asia.

Reason for not granting permission: ‘Some controversy’

No detailed explanation was given publicly by the Delhi Police regarding the cancellation of the event. However, a handwritten note in the organizers’ application mentioned ‘some controversy’ as the reason for not granting permission.

The report said that it is believed in the concerned circles that the Delhi Police may have not granted permission out of fear that the event might create controversy as some people associated with the Awami League were supposed to participate in the seminar.

However, the presence of speakers associated with the Awami League was not directly mentioned by the Delhi Police as the reason for not granting permission.

New discussion after the previous incident

On August 5, the situation in Bangladesh was discussed in the virtual presence of former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the same Foreign Correspondents’ Club. The report mentioned that the speech given at the event had created new tensions between Bangladesh and India.

The Bangladesh government formally protested the incident. It is also said that an assurance was sought to stop such "unwanted provocations".

In addition, the demand for Sheikh Hasina's extradition to Bangladesh was also strongly reiterated. The report mentioned that the possible visit of Bangladeshi Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to India was also postponed.

Who was invited

Selim Mahmud, Information and Research Secretary of the Bangladesh Awami League, was scheduled to attend Saturday's discussion. In addition, freedom fighter and Bangladeshi-American scientist Nooran Nabi was also invited.

Other invited speakers included former Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Veena Sikri, Rohingya rights activist Robi Alam, United Diplomatic Council President Asif Iqbal, and Hand in Hand Foundation General Secretary Golam Jilani.

Czech politician Ondrej Dostal and German politician Peter Fahrenholtz were also scheduled to attend the event.

A question-and-answer session was planned as part of the seminar. The report mentioned that the possibility of any adverse or controversial comments on the situation in Bangladesh was also discussed.

Context of India-Bangladesh relations

The report, citing relevant diplomatic sources, said that Delhi does not want any new controversy to arise in Bangladesh-India relations after the recent developments. That is why the decision to not allow Saturday's talks may have been taken.

India's Ministry of External Affairs had earlier said in reference to Sheikh Hasina's speech that the statements made from that platform had nothing to do with the Indian government and that they did not reflect the views of the Indian government.

Organizer's statement

Foreign Correspondents Club President Wail Awad expressed surprise at the denial of permission for the event.

He said the event was an intellectual discussion on partnership and development. He was not sure why the Delhi Police did not grant permission for the event.

Meanwhile, the scheduled discussion meeting did not take place due to the decision of the Delhi Police.