In Warsaw, a brush with Bangladesh

No officer of the Indian Foreign Service will forget the horrific and murderous activities of the Pakistan army in East Pakistan, beginning 25 March 1971.
After completing five years in the Prime Minister’s Secretariat, I was posted as ambassador to Poland. I had accompanied Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1967 to Warsaw. Hence, I was familiar with the historic city and Polish history.
The Ministry kept me informed of the developments in East Pakistan. Pakistan was committing genocide in its eastern wing. Indira Gandhi was not sitting idle. She visited several European countries and London to brief the leaders of what was really happening in East Pakistan.
Her meeting with President Nixon was not satisfactory. But she got several Senators, Congressmen and a majority of the US media to appreciate and support India’s policy of helping the Bangladeshis. To the despair of Pakistan, the Islamic world and China remained neutral.
Normally, Pakistani diplomats do not display cordiality toward their Indian counterparts. We return the compliment. The Poles, following the Soviet line, were more than friendly towards Indian diplomats. Aware of my proximity to PM Indira Gandhi, I was treated with unusual courtesy in Warsaw.
One day in September 1971 I got a message from the Pakistan ambassador. He wished to meet me at my residence late in the evening. Ambassador Bashir was a Bengali. I could see that he was anxious and distraught. I asked him if I could do anything for him. He handed me a large envelope. “These are the minutes of the meeting Bhutto had held in Geneva a few weeks ago of all Pakistan ambassadors in Europe. The subject was East Pakistan and how Islamabad was dealing with it. My people are being butchered. I have not heard from my close relations in Dacca for months,” Bashir said to me.
“What am I to do with this envelope?” I enquired. “I know you are close to Mrs Gandhi. Please send this to her.” Strictly speaking, I should have sent it to the Foreign Secretary. From there it would do the rounds in the Ministry. I decided to send it to the Prime Minister. Action was immediately taken.
A few days later Bashir came to meet me again. Clandestinely. This time he handed me a diplomatic bomb. Without wasting any time Bashir said, “Here is the cipher code which the Pakistan Foreign office and Heads of Mission use.” I was flabbergasted. For an ambassador the cypher code is of the highest importance, as it is used to convey to the Ministry top secret information. Here was the ambassador of Pakistan giving the cypher code used by him to the ambassador of India. This was unheard of.
I personally took the red hot cargo to Delhi and handed it over to RAW chief R.N. Kaw.
By the time I returned to Warsaw, Ambassador Bashir had resigned from the Pakistan Foreign Service. He had informed the Polish Foreign Office. He was not declared persona non grata but his diplomatic immunity was withdrawn. He was at a loss to find an answer to the problems he faced. Sooner rather than later he would be asked to vacate the residence he was staying in. He would then have nowhere to go. Secondly, if his official car was taken away he and his family would be reduced to using public transport.
The saving grace was that he was not short of money as he had withdrawn all the official and personal funds from the bank. Since he was no longer an ambassador, he could not meet anyone in the Polish Foreign Office.
I faced a dilemma: Should I intercede on his behalf with the Foreign Office? Eventually, I decided to help Bashir. I spoke to the Deputy Foreign Minister, Romuald Spasosky. He had been Polish ambassador to India. I had, more than once taken him to meet Shrimati Gandhi. He said he could only act “unofficially”. Bashir could stay in the official residence for a few weeks. By 16 December it was all over. Pakistan surrendered. East Pakistan was history.
Bashir was re-employed by the newly born Bangladesh government.
The Americans behaved abominably, led by M/s Nixon and Kissinger. Both disregarded the reports of their Consul General in Dacca, who informed his government that Pakistan was committing genocide in East Pakistan. The two high powered American unworthies were an odious couple. They ignored the Consul General’s reports. Nixon, eventually had to resign for telling lies. Kissinger got away, calling Bangladesh a “basket cake”.
That Basket is today doing very well indeed under the benign leadership of Hasina Begum. 6% growth over a decade, third largest producer of rice in the world, second in producing garments, steep decline in infant mortality, gender parity, secularism.
Mr Junaid R.K. Ahmed, a Bangladeshi citizen, currently Country Director of the World Bank in India wrote an article in the Times of India on 16 December: “Making of Shonar Bangla”. It is worth reading.
I visited Dacca in 2004 as External Affairs Minister. I was received with friendly warmth, even respect. I carry very happy memories of my Dacca sojourn and the friends I made. All have passed away.