Tarique Rahman may make two-day bilateral visit to India this month
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman may make a two-day bilateral visit to India in the third week of August, with diplomatic preparations gathering pace in New Delhi and Dhaka, according to multiple sources familiar with the developments.
Two sources — one in the Indian government and another in Indian media — confirmed to Daily Waadaa that preparations are underway for a possible visit next week, although Dhaka says it has yet to receive a formal invitation for a bilateral state visit.
The Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi this week began taking preparatory measures for what officials have been told could be a "high-profile visit" very soon, according to people familiar with the matter. High Commission officials have been put on preparatory mode.
Indian broadcaster NDTV reported on Friday that Tarique Rahman is expected to visit New Delhi “in the second half of next week and that preparations have already begun in both capitals.” The proposed two-day trip is being planned specifically as a bilateral engagement, although the dates and detailed schedule are still being worked out, it said.
A top Bangladesh Foreign Ministry official, however, told Waadaa that Dhaka has not yet received an official invitation from the Indian government for such a bilateral visit.
"If the official invitation letter is received, then the bilateral trip could be confirmed," the official said.
Another senior Foreign Ministry source, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the discussions, said Bangladesh has placed several conditions before India for Tarique to undertake the bilateral visit.
The visit is likely to take place only if those conditions are met, the official said, declining to disclose what Dhaka has asked New Delhi to do.
The developments come amid an intense round of diplomatic activity between the two neighbours.
Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi, who travelled to New Delhi immediately after meeting Rahman in Dhaka on Monday, is expected to return to Dhaka on Friday night. During his stay in New Delhi, Trivedi met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a day after his talks with Rahman.
At their August 10 meeting, Tarique told Trivedi that a "conducive environment" was needed to improve Bangladesh-India relations, which have remained strained over several issues, including the continued presence of ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in India and Dhaka's request for her extradition.
If the visit materialises, Tarique is expected to hold bilateral talks with Modi. Trade, connectivity, energy cooperation, border management, regional security and water sharing are likely to figure prominently in the discussions.
The 1996 Ganges Water Sharing Treaty, which expires in December, could also feature in the talks.
The proposed trip would be Tarique's first visit to India since taking office in February and could mark the most significant attempt yet by Dhaka and New Delhi to reset relations following the sharp deterioration in ties after Hasina's government fell in August 2024.
India had earlier invited Tarique Rahman to attend the BRICS outreach session scheduled to be held in New Delhi in September. Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal had said Tarique had been invited both in connection with the BRICS gathering and for bilateral engagement, although Dhaka has so far stopped short of confirming a bilateral visit.
Bangladesh Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman earlier said no decision had been taken on the prime minister's India trip for the BRICS summit and maintained that the invitation received by Dhaka was extended to Rahman in his capacity as BIMSTEC chair rather than as Bangladesh's prime minister.
State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaid Islam also said this week that no date for an India visit had been finalised, while leaving open the possibility of a trip when Rahman's domestic schedule permits.
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