New Delhi/Dhaka: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been invited to the swearing-in ceremony of Bangladesh’s new prime minister Tarique Rahman. The swearing-in ceremony is scheduled to take place on February 17.
Prime Minister Modi is unlikely to attend the event due to his prior commitments in Mumbai on the same day with French president Emmanuel Macron, NDTV has reported.
External affairs minister S Jaishankar or Vice President C P Radhakrishnan is likely to attend the event that is likely to be held at the southern plaza of the Bangladesh parliament House.
Rahman’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) secured a sweeping victory in the general elections held on February 12, winning 209 of the 297 seats. He took over the reigns of the party after his mother Khaleda Zia’s death.
India is among the 13 countries invited to the swearing-in ceremony by chief adviser of the interim government in Bangladesh, Muhammad Yunus. The other countries are China, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Malaysia, Brunei, Sri Lanka, Nepal, the Maldives and Bhutan.
Pakistan prime minister Shehbaz Sharif is likely to attend the event in Dhaka.
Rahman spent 17 years in self-imposed exile in London. He returned to Dhaka and emerged as the new leader of the country that has been in turmoil since August 2024 after the ouster of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina.
While Hasina’s Awami League was barred from contesting the elections, the Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh was a strong contender for the BNP, raising concerns for India. The Jamaat, however, managed only 68 seats.
PM Modi spoke to Rahman after the results were announced on Friday, reaffirming India’s continued commitment to the peace, progress and prosperity of the people of both countries, as reported by India Today.
“I conveyed my best wishes and support in his endeavour to fulfil the aspirations of the people of Bangladesh. As two close neighbours with deep-rooted historical and cultural ties, I reaffirmed India’s continued commitment to the peace, progress, and prosperity of both our peoples,” the Prime Minister posted on X after the call.
In another post, he said he looked forward to working with him to advance common development goals.
Following his victory, Rahman said Bangladesh’s “interests” would form the cornerstone of his foreign policy towards New Delhi.
“The interests of Bangladesh and its people will determine our foreign policy,” Rahman said, adding that he seeks to maintain balanced relations with regional powers such as India, China and Pakistan, and does not view any country as a “master”.
The BNP, meanwhile, said it looked forward to constructive engagement with India with a shared commitment to peace and stability in South Asia.
“We look forward to engaging constructively with India to advance our multifaceted relationship, guided by mutual respect, sensitivity to each other’s concerns, and a shared commitment to peace, stability, and prosperity in our region,” the party wrote on response to PM Modi’s post.
According to sources, Rahman will seek Hasina’s extradition from India after he is formally sworn-in. The former prime minister has been sentenced to death for alleged excesses during a students’ uprising that took place in Bangladesh before her ouster.
