WIKILEAKS EXPOSÉ

India feels concerned about the propaganda over prime minister Sheikh Hasina's closeness with the country, WikiLeaks has revealed.

In the leaked cable, sent by US ambassador to Dhaka James F Moriarty on Jan 14, 2009, the ambassador quoted Indian high commissioner to Bangladesh Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty, saying, "Indian Minister of External Affairs Pranab Mukharjiee planned to visit Dhaka on February 8 for talks that would centre primarily on counterterrorism issues."

Chakravarty said that India would prefer a primarily bilateral engagement, according to London-based The Guardian.

The Indian envoy, however, as quoted by Moriarty, said, "India understood that Bangladesh might insist on a regional task force to provide Hasina political cover from allegations she was too close to India."

Moriarty, in a private note in the cable, said, "India frequently argues that international Islamic terrorists use Bangladesh as a safe haven and often cross its porous border into India for bombing and other attacks.

"New Delhi also says Dhaka should do more to uproot Indian domestic extremist groups, including the United Liberation Front of Assam, that uses Bangladesh as a safe haven," the US ambassador added in the note.

The Indian high commissioner expressed pleasure over the landslide victory by the Awami League in Dec 29, 2008 parliamentary elections. Moriarty noted that the winning party had warm relations with New Delhi.

Chakravarty told ambassador Moriarty that improving security cooperation would be the top Indian priority with the new Bangladeshi government, the cable shows.

Either bilateral or regional, Pinak stressed the importance that the task force be action-oriented and not become yet another regional talk shop, Moriarty quoted in the cable.