Bangladesh India Out Campaign: There was a campaign called 'India Out' that was launched in Bangladesh, similar to the one in the Maldives. The main opposition party of Bangladesh started the campaign, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, which boycotted the general elections. In support of this campaign, the BNP general secretary, Rahul Kabir Rizvi, burned an Indian shawl. The party did a lot of publicity on social media. Still, the protest did not gain much momentum on the ground. According to reports, the BNP did not get much out of the elections and, hence, started this campaign without proper planning and without connecting with the ordinary people.
The protest started in January:
On January 17th, a campaign called "Boycott India" was started in Bangladesh by some small political parties. They used social media to encourage people to stop using Indian goods and services and instead support products made in Bangladesh.
There is reliance on India for something, but there have also been protests about it.
Bangladesh is heavily reliant on India and China for its imports. As per the World Bank, around 16% of Bangladesh's total imports in 2021-22 were from India, which is more than what it used to be earlier. According to the Indian Embassy, the import of daily-use items from India has seen a significant increase in the past three years, along with industrial raw materials like cotton and yarn. Chandanichak and New Market in Dhaka are popular places to buy Indian clothes. Traders have reported an increase in sales of Indian goods post-elections, which has come as a relief to many business people who were earlier hesitant due to the election campaign.
Did you know that even vegetables are exported from India to Bangladesh?
India is a significant exporter of several goods to Bangladesh, including vegetables, oil, cosmetics, clothes, mobile phones, and vehicles. Bangladeshis also enjoy buying luxury items like jewelry and fashionable clothes imported from India. There is a high demand in Bangladesh for raw materials, cotton, and skilled artisans.