The Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in Agartala will resume visa and consular services from February 5, nearly two months after operations were suspended following a security breach. The suspension came on December 3, a day after a group of protesters forcibly entered the mission’s premises.
Following the breach, Assistant High Commissioner Arif Mahamad was summoned to Dhaka but has since returned to Agartala. In a notice issued on Tuesday, Md Al Amin, First Secretary of the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission, confirmed the resumption: “All visa and consular services of the Bangladesh Asst High Commission will resume on February 5.”
In response to the incident, security measures have been intensified at the mission. Authorities suspended three police personnel for lapses related to the breach. The heightened security aims to prevent any recurrence as services restart.
In December last year, the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in Agartala, Tripura, suspended all visa and consular services indefinitely due to security concerns. This decision follows a protest at their office related to the arrest of Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das in Dhaka, during which demonstrators attempted to enter the mission’s premises.
Md Al-Ameen, a senior official at the mission, announced that the suspension of services is effective immediately.
Tripura's Chief Minister, Manik Saha, condemned the protest, stating that while peaceful demonstrations are acceptable, aggressive actions are not.
In response to the incident, the All Tripura Hotel & Restaurant Owners' Association decided to stop serving Bangladeshi guests, citing disrespect shown towards the Indian flag and ongoing issues faced by minorities in Bangladesh due to fundamentalist actions.
In light of the vandalism reported at the mission, Bangladesh had also summoned the Indian envoy in Dhaka to express its concerns.