New Delhi: Bangladesh foreign minister Khalilur Rahman is expected to make a brief visit to the Indian capital next month – the first since the new Tarique Rahman government came to power in Dhaka – as the two countries take forward their efforts to normalise relations after a period of unprecedented strain, people familiar with the matter said. Indian high commissioner Pranay Verma met Rahman in Dhaka last month and extended an invitation from external affairs minister S Jaishankar to visit India
Rahman, the former National Security Adviser in the interim setup led by Muhammad Yunus and a surprise inclusion in Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s cabinet, is expected to make a stopover in New Delhi on April 8 while travelling to Mauritius for the Indian Ocean Conference, the people said on condition of anonymity.
Indian high commissioner Pranay Verma met Rahman in Dhaka last month and extended an invitation from external affairs minister S Jaishankar to visit India at an early date, reflecting New Delhi’s interest in revitalising ties after the strains witnessed during the term of the caretaker administration.
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There has been no official word from Dhaka on Prime Minister Rahman’s first foreign trip, though the people said he is unlikely to make India or China the destination for such a visit as part of the new Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) government’s desire to signal that its foreign policy will not favour any regional power. The people said the Bangladeshi PM is likely to visit a country in the neighbourhood – either Bhutan or the Maldives – with Thimphu widely expected to be his first foreign port of call.
“Prime Minister Rahman wants to build stronger relations within the region and also signal his thanks to the regional leaders who attended his inauguration,” one of the people said.
Both Bhutan Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay and Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu attended the swearing-in of Bangladesh’s new government in Dhaka on February 17. India was represented by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.
Prime Minister Rahman has also responded to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi’s efforts to normalise and rebuild bilateral relations through a letter sent in response to a missive from the Indian leader. Birla had handed over Modi’s letter to Tarique Rahman during a meeting in Dhaka.
In his letter dated February 26, Tarique Rahman acknowledged India’s “kind gesture” of sending the Lok Sabha Speaker to the swearing-in of his new government last week and said he deeply valued Modi’s “kind reflection on the historic and long-standing ties between our two countries”. He also emphasised his government’s intention to take forward relations and engagements with India based on equality and mutual trust.
“Bangladesh accords high importance to its relationship with India, a partnership shaped by history, culture, geography that we share. Our two people share considerable commonality and enjoy deep-rooted ties,” he said.
“As our Government assumes office with a robust mandate, we look forward to advancing our ties and engagements with India premised on dignity, equality, mutual trust and respect [and] benefit sharing. I do believe, if Dhaka and Delhi would address issues in ways that yield gains for the common people, there is so much that our two countries can accomplish in shared interests,” he added.
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Tarique Rahman referred to India’s vision of “Vikshit Bharat 2047” and said he was confident that the two countries can together “reinvigorate our cooperative engagements to secure peace, harmony, stability and prosperity for all people in the longest time”. He also thanked Modi for his invitation to him to visit India along with his family. “I look forward to undertaking a visit at a mutually convenient time and to engage in meaningful discussion,” Tarique Rahman said.
Modi, in his letter to the Bangladeshi PM, had said the strong convergence between the developmental priorities of the two sides will serve as a guiding principle for future cooperation. Modi also said he intended to work closely with Bangladesh to enhance regional cooperation and advance shared goals in connectivity, trade, technology, energy, health care and people-to-people exchanges.
The Indian side has repeatedly signalled its willingness to make a fresh start with the new government in Bangladesh, and to move past the rancour that characterised bilateral relations under previous BNP governments led by Tarique Rahman’s mother, late prime minister Khaleda Zia. The BNP, which had misgivings about the Indian side’s close ties with the government of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, too has indicated it will move beyond the past to reinvigorate relations.
Hasina, ousted during a student-led uprising in August 2024, currently is in self-exile in India. New Delhi has not yet responded to Dhaka’s demand for her extradition.