How false claims linked NSI chief’s Delhi visit to Hasina’s return

Several Indian and obscure Bangladeshi media outlets have linked the NSI chief’s visit to Delhi to Sheikh Hasina’s proclamations about returning to Bangladesh in December.

Awami League-aligned social media accounts have amplified the speculation, portraying the trip as part of a secret agenda.

But intelligence sources have rubbished the rumours.

Major General Abu Mohammad Sarwar Farid, director general of the National Security Intelligence (NSI), travelled to New Delhi on October 25 to attend the eighth South Asian Counter Terrorism Conference, scheduled for October 26–27, an NSI source told Daily Waadaa.

The source said the annual conference had been scheduled about three months earlier and brought together intelligence representatives from around 15 countries.

“Besides counter-terrorism discussions, the conference covers drug trafficking, human trafficking and different cross-border security issues of the region,” the source said. “It is important for us to build greater regional cooperation.”

The visit also offered an opportunity to raise Bangladesh’s concerns directly with Indian counterparts on the sidelines, the source added.

But the source rejected claims circulating in some Indian media outlets and what it described as Awami-linked media outlets that portrayed the trip as a secret bilateral mission.

A report by Northeast News, published under the headline “Tarique’s Japan visit may see Matarbari Port financing deal tied to transit corridor for India; NSI chief in Delhi”, described Farid’s departure as abrupt and claimed, citing unnamed “reliable sources”, that he was scheduled to meet Prakash Jain, chief of India’s external intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW).

The report also suggested that Prime Minister Tarique Rahman might make an unexpected visit to India after returning from Japan. It linked these possibilities to speculation about transit arrangements, financing for Matarbari port and domestic political opposition.

However, the NSI source told Waadaa that the Delhi visit had been scheduled months in advance, while discussions about PM Rahman’s visit to India had been going on for months.

Other outlets went further, connecting the trip to Hasina’s possible return from India, where she has been staying since fleeing Bangladesh during the 2024 uprising.

The Indian Bengali outlet The Wall reported, citing unnamed sources, that a high-level intelligence meeting between the two countries was the purpose of the visit and that Hasina’s return would be an important topic.

Sangbad Pratidin similarly suggested that intelligence-level talks could discuss her return.

OTN Bangla published a more detailed claim, suggesting that discussions might cover where Hasina would stay and how her security would be ensured if she returned. It mentioned the possibility of special arrangements inside a cantonment.

NSI sources have rejected the rumours.

The speculation also spilled onto social media.

Nabanita Chowdhury, an Awami League-affiliated former TV host, questioned the purpose of the intelligence talks, asking: “If the government remains firm on seeking Sheikh Hasina’s extradition, rather than her return, what are the two countries’ intelligence officials talking about so much?”

The reports used the timing of Farid’s departure, the prime minister’s Japan visit and the unresolved extradition issue to create an invented connection between separate developments.

The NSI sources told Waadaa that the conference was relevant to Bangladesh’s regional security interests, including counter-terrorism, trafficking and cross-border issues.

It also offered a forum to communicate Bangladesh’s concerns to Indian counterparts.