India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday briefed an all-party meeting in the Parliament House on the situation in Bangladesh a day after Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled following a violent uprising that killed hundreds.

The meeting was attended by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah, leader of the opposition Rahul Gandhi, TR Baalu of DMK, Ramgopal Yadav of Samajwadi Party, Sudip Bandyopadhyay of TMC, Misa Bharti of RJD, and Supriya Sule of NCP among others.

The meeting took place ahead of a possible discussion in parliament on Bangladesh today.

Congress MP Manish Tewari told reporters that the situation in Bangladesh is serious. It is worrying for South Asia and East Asia.

“I hope that there would be a discussion on this in both the Houses of parliament and the government would facilitate it. It is important to discuss the Bangladesh issue.”

Samajwadi Party lawmaker Virendra Singh said the development in Bangladesh is a message for all countries that do not listen to people's voices.

Former senior Indian army officer Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain said, “Scholars and analysts think that democracy was subjugated. Non-participative elections were conducted and no opposition was tolerated.

"Another reason for this is the close relations of Sheikh Hasina with India which the people of Bangladesh did not like and the primary trigger was the quota system for jobs.”

JMMP MP Mahua Maji said, “Bangladesh is our neighbouring country. The government of India must take steps with patience and intellect in order to avoid any impact of the situation there in our country. They should discuss it with the opposition as well.

“In 1971, India stood by Bangladesh when it was at war with Pakistan. India also helped in the emergence of a new country.”

Congress MP Karti Chidambaram said, “It is very worrying to see the kind of mayhem and violence in Bangladesh. Our primary concern is the safety of our citizens there, border security and what kind of future regime will come in Bangladesh... We are fully with the government as far as national security and interests are concerned. The government briefed us all in the morning.”

RJD MP Manoj Jha said, “The all-party meeting was very necessary. We should keep aside the popular social media narrative that the protests [in Bangladesh] were due to the quota issue.

“There are several layers of these protests and quota was one of the issues. The elements of democracy were unmet if you recall the last elections. Third, there is an extreme philosophy too. Fourth, the economic development was not inclusive. I believe that our government must be keeping a close eye over the developments and that our border is secure and safe."