Former Indian career diplomat, ex-union minister and Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar on Saturday night said deposed Bangladeshi prime minister Sheikh Hasina should be allowed to stay in the country as long as she wants.

Expressing happiness that Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri went to Dhaka last month and held discussions with the authorities there, Aiyar told PTI on the sidelines of the 16th Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival that the talks should be continuous and New Delhi needs to establish ministerial contacts with the interim government of Bangladesh.

About demands by Bangladesh to extradite Hasina, he said, “I hope we will never disagree that Sheikh Hasina has done a lot of good for us. I am glad she was given refuge. I think we should be her host as long as she wants, even if it is for all her life.”

Hasina, 77, has been living in India since 5 August when she fled the country following a massive student-led protest that toppled her 16-year regime.

The Congress leader said it is true that minority Hindus in Bangladesh are being attacked, but mostly it is because they are supporters of Hasina.

“They (reports about attacks on Hindus) are true but exaggerated, because many of the conflicts are more about settlement of political differences,” he said.

Source: PTI