US behind Bangladesh crisis? US refutes claims on links to Sheikh Hasina’s ouster, says ‘We had no involvement’

The United States refuted the claims accusing the US government of being behind the mass uprising in Bangladesh. The White House Press Secretary Karine Jean Pierre in a statement on Monday clarified that US has had “no involvement” and the rumours doing the rounds were “simply false.”

In a media briefing, the White House Secretary said, "So, we have had no involvement at all. Any, reports or rumours that the United States government was involved in these, in these events is simply, simply false. That is not true."

The recent student protests in Bangladesh led to the deaths of hundreds of people and prompted Sheikh Hasina to resign from the post of Prime Minister on August 5 amid escalating tensions. She later fled to India.

Jean Pierre further asserted that Bangladesh's citizens should determine the future of their government and said, “This is a choice for and by the Bangladeshi people. We believe that the Bangladeshi people should determine the future of the Bangladeshi government, and that's where we stand," ANI reported.

She added, “Any allegations, certainly we will continue to say, and what I have said here is simply untrue.”

A US-based Foreign Policy expert and Director of the South Asia Institute at The Wilson Center, Michael Kugelman, also dismissed the allegations of foreign interference in the Bangladesh crisis and noted that he had not seen any "plausible evidence" to support these claims, reported ANI.

“My view has been very simple. I see this as a crisis that was driven by purely internal factors, by students who were unhappy about a particular issue, job quotas that they didn't like and they were worried about the government,” ANI quoted Michael Kugelman as saying.

He pointed out that the Bangladeshi PM's harsh crackdown on student protesters escalated the agitation. Dismissing allegations put forth by Sheikh Hasina's son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, Michael Kugelman emphasised, “This was simply driven by internal factors.

(With inputs from ANI)