19 minutes agoAuthor: Swadhin Patel
India-Bangladesh ties are facing fresh strain amid reports of differences within India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) over how to engage with Bangladesh’s new leadership.
The Indian Express reported that a powerful lobby in the MEA may have worked against efforts to improve ties, including a proposed visit by Bangladesh PM Tarique Rahman to India.
The report says the MEA may be upset over Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appointment of non-IFS officer and politician Dinesh Trivedi as India’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh.
So, what is behind the reported differences, where does Sheikh Hasina fit into the equation, and what could this mean for the two neighbours? Let’s understand.
Why is there a reported difference within the MEA?
Report said that Modi had hinted at more appointments of non-IFS ambassadors in India’s neighbourhood during a meeting with Indian envoys earlier this year.
According to the report, Trivedi has been trying to bridge the growing gap between India and Bangladesh and had even persuaded Bangladesh PM Tarique Rahman to agree to dates for a visit to India.
However, the effort was reportedly not appreciated by everyone within the MEA, and the ministry acted as a spoiler after the proposed dates were leaked.
Professor Rajan Kumar of the School of International Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University said the appointment of Trivedi as a political person was meant to take engagement with Bangladesh to the political level rather than leave it entirely to professional bureaucrats.
However, he noted that India has a history of appointing political leaders as ambassadors in different countries.
According to Kumar, Trivedi’s appointment essentially indicates that India is trying to normalise ties with Bangladesh.
What happened over Sheikh Hasina’s press conference?
Report said that after the proposed dates for Rahman’s India visit leaked, the MEA permitted former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to hold a virtual press conference at Delhi’s Foreign Correspondents Club, where she attacked her country’s government.
The report also noted that a year earlier, the MEA had stopped a proposed Hasina press conference at the Delhi Press Club.
It also said that in 2018, permission was denied to a British emissary to speak on behalf of the late Khaleda Zia, who was then jailed in Bangladesh.
What does Bangladesh want from India?
Kumar said one of the main issues from Bangladesh’s side is that it wants India to hand over Sheikh Hasina. He said India will not do that unless she decides to leave on her own.
According to Kumar, Bangladesh will also realise that it cannot simply leave India, which is a major partner and a growing country.
He said becoming completely dependent on countries such as China and Pakistan has its own pitfalls.
What could improve India-Bangladesh ties?
Kumar said that if India and Bangladesh want to improve their relationship, strengthening political ties would be the first step. The next would be reviving strong economic cooperation and investment.
He said the two countries could also work on transportation and energy cooperation and establish normal relations.
India’s main concern, according to Kumar, is security threats emerging from Bangladesh. He said these are among the issues the two countries need to discuss.
What does Rahman skipping BRICS mean?
Bangladesh’s State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humayun Kabir said India invited Tarique Rahman to the summit not as the Prime Minister, but as the chair of BIMSTEC.
Speaking to journalists at the Foreign Service Academy, Kabir said the Prime Minister had not received a separate invitation to attend BRICS.
Kumar said his absence would come against the backdrop of the already cancelled India visit and the strained relationship between the two countries.
He said if Bangladesh decides to re-initiate political ties, it is possible.
At the same time, he said the Sheikh Hasina factor and the radical element in Bangladesh are making the government there careful and cautious.
What is the larger diplomatic message?
The reported friction within the MEA suggests there may be differences over how India should engage with Bangladesh, but Kumar said the top leadership appears to be seeking normalisation.
He said the appointment of Trivedi as a political envoy was essentially aimed at strengthening ties and taking the relationship to the political level.
The immediate areas for cooperation, according to him, would be transportation, energy and normalisation of relations, alongside discussions on security concerns.
According to Kumar, Bangladesh is also cautious because it fears antagonising some sections of its own population.
He said the “hardcore element” in Bangladesh would not want the country to move too close to India immediately after the election.
