Foreign secretary Misri meets Bangladeshi leaders in Dhaka

In the first high-level talks since the Sheikh Hasina-led government fell in August, Indian foreign secretary Vikram Misri met Bangladeshi leaders in Dhaka this week.

During his visit, Misri held meetings with interim government chief adviser Muhammad Yunus, foreign affairs adviser Md. Touhid Hossain, and Misri’s counterpart, Mohammad Jashimuddin, as part of the foreign office consultations.

The discussions included India’s concerns over the safety of minorities in Bangladesh, and the recent attacks on religious and diplomatic properties.

While India sought a “positive, constructive, and mutually beneficial relationship” with Bangladesh, Misri stressed the need to address recent incidents affecting bilateral ties.

“We … discussed some regrettable incidents of attacks on cultural, religious, and diplomatic properties. We expect, overall, a constructive approach on all these issues by the Bangladesh authorities, and we look forward to moving the relationship forward in a positive, forward-looking, and constructive direction,” Misri said in a statement following his meeting with Jashimuddin.

Countering India’s statements, Jashimuddin called the allegations mere “misinformation” and said that religious freedom is upheld in Bangladesh.

“We emphasized that this is an internal matter for Bangladesh and that foreign comments on our internal issues are inappropriate,” he said, according to Dhaka Tribune.

Misri’s discussions with the Bangladeshi leaders also addressed issues like border firing, the Teesta water-sharing pact, and visa accessibility for Bangladeshi nationals visiting India.

While Yunus called India-Bangladesh relations as “solid”, he also acknowledged existing tensions, partly attributed to Hasina’s statements from India after fleeing the country. The Hasina government was widely believed in Bangladesh to be pro-India. He raised concerns over her influence and said it was the interim government’s priority is to build a “new Bangladesh” after the mass uprising.

Misri’s visit, while conciliatory in tone, comes amid growing strains, including protests targeting diplomatic missions in both countries.