India Keen to Bring Tarique Rahman to Delhi

A new effort to ease strained Bangladesh-India relations has begun amid growing diplomatic activity by India and its interest in bringing Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to Delhi. The two countries have taken steps to restore institutional communication through meetings on trade, visas and consular issues. The most important part of this process is a possible visit by Tarique Rahman to India, which Delhi is reportedly keen to arrange, diplomatic sources said.

According to an Indian news outlet, the 16th meeting of the Bangladesh-India Joint Working Group on Trade (JWGT) will be held in New Delhi on October 8 and 9. A 10-member Bangladeshi delegation will travel to Delhi on Wednesday to attend the meeting, which is being held after a three-year gap. The delegation is led by Ayesha Akter, additional secretary of the FTA wing of the Ministry of Commerce. Representatives from the Ministry of Railways, National Board of Revenue, Bangladesh Land Port Authority, Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution are also part of the delegation.

The meeting was initially scheduled for October 7 and 8. However, logistical problems prevented the Bangladeshi delegation from travelling to India on time. The meeting was later rescheduled for October 8 and 9. Discussions will focus on reducing the trade gap, removing obstacles to imports and exports, and strengthening economic ties.

The 15th JWGT meeting was held in Dhaka on September 26 and 27, 2023. Regular meetings were suspended after relations between the two countries became strained following the fall of the Awami League government in August 2024. In April 2025, Bangladesh stopped importing Indian yarn through land ports. India responded by restricting imports from Bangladesh of ready-made garments, processed food, plastic products and jute goods.

Alongside trade talks, Bangladesh and India are also working to arrange a meeting of their Joint Working Group on consular issues. The meeting is expected to be held in Dhaka, although a date has not yet been fixed. It is considered particularly important because of various visa-related difficulties. The meeting may discuss visa procedures for citizens of both countries, consular services and ways to resolve related problems.

Diplomatic observers say that although progress on politically sensitive issues may remain slow, maintaining institutional communication on trade and consular matters is important for the bilateral relationship. Such meetings could help restore regular communication between the two countries.

Bangladesh-India relations deteriorated sharply after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government amid the student-led mass movement in August 2024. Sheikh Hasina’s stay in India, the border situation, visa operations and various political issues have since become major points of discussion between the two countries. As a result, regular high-level communication was significantly reduced.

After the BNP won the national election and formed the government in February this year, Dhaka and New Delhi began efforts to take relations into a new phase. India quickly sought to increase engagement with the new government. New Delhi invited Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to visit India bilaterally. He was also invited to attend the BRICS summit as chair of BIMSTEC. However, Bangladesh did not attend the BRICS summit last month. No date has yet been set for Tarique Rahman’s bilateral visit to India.

People familiar with the matter said the busy diplomatic schedules of both countries have become a major obstacle to fixing the visit. India’s diplomatic calendar is particularly busy in October, with Swiss President Guy Parmelin and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk scheduled to visit India. In November, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to attend the ASEAN summit in the Philippines. In December, Modi may visit the United States, Canada and Belgium.

Tarique Rahman also has several international engagements. He is expected to visit Japan in October and may travel to Turkey and Saudi Arabia in November. Finding a mutually convenient date for a meeting between the two leaders has therefore become a challenge.

The Hindustan Times reported that Dhaka wanted a meeting between the commerce secretaries of the two countries after the JWGT meeting. However, the Indian side told Dhaka that a secretary-level meeting could take place only after meetings of other institutional mechanisms dealing with issues such as transit and border trade are completed.

Diplomatic analysts say Tarique Rahman’s visit to Delhi would be more than a formal engagement for India. It would send a strong message about efforts to restore relations between the two countries. India is therefore trying through various channels to accelerate the visit. However, coordinating the schedules of both sides remains the main challenge in setting a date.