E-Paper
Prime Minister Modi invites Bangladesh PM Tarique Rahman to visit India
Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla attends Tarique Rahman’s swearing-in in Dhaka, hands over PM Modi’s letter inviting him to visit India
New Delhi: Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla participated in the swearing-in of Tarique Rahman’s new government in Dhaka on Tuesday and handed over Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s invitation to his Bangladeshi counterpart to visit India, signalling New Delhi’s intention to move quickly to rebuild bilateral ties.
Birla joined several regional leaders, including Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu, Bhutan Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay and Pakistan planning minister Ahsan Iqbal, for the inauguration of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) government at the Parliament complex.
Rahman, 60, the son of late former premier Khaleda Zia and late president Ziaur Rahman, takes office facing urgent challenges, including restoring political stability, rebuilding investor confidence and reviving the economy after the turmoil that followed the student-led uprising that toppled Sheikh Hasina’s government in August 2024.
Following the swearing-in, Birla met Rahman and handed over Modi’s letter inviting Rahman and his family to visit India.
“I take this opportunity to invite you, along with Dr Zubaida Rahman and your daughter Zaima, on a visit to India at a mutually convenient time. A warm welcome awaits you in India,” Modi wrote in the letter.
Modi reiterated his congratulations on the BNP’s victory in the general election and on Rahman’s appointment as prime minister. “Your victory is a testimony to the trust and confidence reposed by the people of Bangladesh in your leadership and their mandate for your vision to take the country forward on the path of peace, stability and prosperity,” he said.
India and Bangladesh, Modi said, share a deep-rooted friendship based on common history, cultural ties and shared aspirations for peace and prosperity.
“The strong convergence between our respective developmental priorities shall serve as a guiding principle for our future cooperation,” he said. “I look forward to working closely with you to strengthen our multifaceted bilateral relations, enhance regional cooperation, and advance our shared goals in wide-ranging areas of connectivity, trade, technology, education, skill development, energy, healthcare, as well as cultural and people-to-people exchanges.”
As fast-growing economies, India and Bangladesh can become catalysts for “each other’s sustainable growth, work for each other’s security and enable mutual prosperity”, Modi said.
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, who accompanied Birla, had a courtesy meeting with the Leader of the Opposition, Jamaat-e-Islami chief Shafiqur Rahman, on the margins of the swearing-in ceremony. Misri conveyed greetings to Shafiqur Rahman on his new role and “reaffirmed India’s enduring support to Bangladesh, underscoring the people-centric nature of the ties”, the Indian high commission said on social media. Shafiqur Rahman “highlighted the deep civilisational bonds shared by the two countries and expressed hope for stronger bilateral relations”.
Birla said on social media that he had a “constructive meeting” with the Bangladesh PM and handed over Modi’s personal letter “inviting him to visit India at the earliest convenience”.
“India stands ready to support Bangladesh’s endeavours to build a democratic, progressive and inclusive nation,” Birla said in another social media post.
Birla also met Maldivian President Muizzu, Bhutan Prime Minister Tobgay and other leaders on the margins of the inauguration.
A surprise inclusion in Rahman’s cabinet was former diplomat Khalilur Rahman, who was given the foreign affairs portfolio. Khalilur Rahman, who has also served in the United Nations, was the National Security Adviser in the previous interim government led by Muhammad Yunus and played a key role in negotiating Bangladesh’s trade deal with the US.
Khalilur Rahman was perceived as one of the most influential players in the caretaker administration after Yunus. BNP leader Humayun Kabir, who had been tipped by some quarters as the potential foreign minister, was among 10 persons appointed as advisers to Rahman and will have the rank of minister of state.
