Critically examine the compulsions which prompted India to play a decisive role in the emergence of Bangladesh. (UPSC 2013)
India’s decisive role in Bangladesh’s emergence was driven by humanitarian, security and strategic compulsions.
Humanitarian: Operation Searchlight (1971) unleashed mass killings and sent about 8–10 million refugees into India, straining food, shelter, health and law and order in border states.
Security and political: East Pakistan became a base for anti-India activity, while the denial of power to the Awami League after its electoral victory offended democratic and moral opinion; a hostile Pakistan on both flanks threatened India, including the Siliguri Corridor.
Strategic: fears of US-China-Pakistan alignment and regional encirclement, balanced by the Indo-Soviet Treaty, encouraged a firmer Indian response. Thus, India’s intervention was not merely altruistic; it fused sympathy for Bengali self-determination with hard national interest.
