Indian Foreign Secretary Visits Bangladesh

Indian foreign secretary Harsh Shringla flew to Dhaka on Tuesday for a previously unannounced visit, during which he is expected to convey a special message from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina, people familiar with the developments said.

This is Shringla’s first trip abroad since the Covid-19 outbreak. It is also a senior Indian official’s the first visit to Bangladesh since travel restrictions were imposed due to the pandemic.

Shringla, who earlier served as the Indian envoy in Dhaka, is carrying a message from Modi for Hasina, the people cited above said on condition of anonymity. He is also expected to meet foreign minister AK Abdul Momen and foreign secretary Masud bin Momen.

A brief statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs after Shringla arrived in Dhaka said the foreign secretary was on a visit to Bangladesh from August 18-19 to “discuss and take forward cooperation on matters of mutual interest”.

Hasina visited India last October, while Modi’s planned visit to Bangladesh in March to participate in events marking the birth centenary of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was called off due to the pandemic. The two leaders have spoken on the phone several times this year, most recently in May.

Ties between the two countries have been under some strain since last year, when Bangladeshi leaders were irked by comments from BJP leaders about deporting illegal migrants from Assam. The Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and the implementation of the National Register of Citizens also affected ties, and Hasina had questioned the need for CAA during an interview earlier this year.

India has taken several steps in recent weeks to improve connectivity with Bangladesh, including handing over 10 railway locomotives last month. This was done days after the first container train made its way from India to Bangladesh and the first shipment of goods was sent from Kolkata to Tripura via Chattogram port.

After taking over as foreign secretary in January, Shringla visited Dhaka in March. Shringla had met Prime Minister Hasina during his last visit to Bangladesh.

Source: HT