Watch | Processing Delays Trigger Protests Outside Indian Visa Centres In Dhaka, Khulna

Hundreds of frustrated Bangladeshis protested and created a ruckus at the Indian Visa Application Centre (IVAC) in Dhaka on Monday after a queue seeking visa approval stretched for at least a kilometre.

The IVAC earlier this month paused visa services owing the unrest caused after the student-led protests which saw the ouster of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina. The Indian embassy in Dhaka had evacuated 190 Indian non-essential staffers and their families posted in the High Commission of Dhaka.

Other than Dhaka, India also has high commissions/consulates in Chittagong, Rajshahi, Khulna and Sylhet. Visa applicants also staged protests at the Indian Visa Application Centre in Satkhira’s Itagacha.

The Indian visa application centre later resumed “limited operations” on August 13. At the time it had requested visa applicants to arrive at the centre only after receiving a text message to collect their passports.

The Bangladeshi visa applicants at the Dhaka centre alleged that they were harassed. They were also angry because they were facing delays despite waiting for several months.

Bangladeshi citizens often visit India for travel and tourism and medical purposes. “Getting an Indian visa has become a matter of luck. You can’t apply again unless two months have passed since your last attempt,” Rustam Ali, a resident of Munjitpur, Satkhira told the Dhaka Tribune.

“We sent police to manage the situation at the Indian Visa Centre in Itagacha. Some passports have been returned, and the remaining applicants have been assured that their concerns will be reported to the Indian High Commission in Dhaka,” Satkhira police official Rafiqul Islam was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

Videos shared on social media outlets also showed police presence in Dhaka’s IVAC and also some members of the Bangladeshi army who were urging the applicants to calm down.

Most applicants say they need the visas for urgent medical needs. “I’ve been waiting for four months without receiving a visa. My wife is very ill, and I need to take her to India for treatment. We have only one demand – we want our visas,” Tarakanath Das told the newspaper.