PM Tarique Rahman’s trip stalled: What it means for Bangladesh-India ties

New Delhi, India – Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s archetypal travel to India has been enactment connected hold, highlighting the strained ties betwixt the 2 South Asian neighbours since the July 2024 student-led uprising that forced Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to fly the country.

Since coming to powerfulness successful February, Rahman – the lad of Hasina’s archrival, the precocious Khaleda Zia – has aimed to amended ties with India. But a property league conducted by Hasina, who lives successful India successful exile, has riled Bangladesh.

Dhaka says that the August 5 property league has “vitiated” the atmosphere, adding that “a propitious situation needs to beryllium created for the visit” of Prime Minister Rahman.

For now, Rahman’s travel looks uncertain, arsenic Bangladesh’s Foreign Ministry said officials from some countries person been engaged successful talks for “several weeks” to enactment retired a imaginable solution.

Here is everything you request to cognize astir the latest diplomatic turbulence betwixt the South Asian neighbours.

Vehicles determination past a mural of Bangladesh’s ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, astatine the University of Dhaka, successful Dhaka, Bangladesh, June 29, 2026 [Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters]

What’s up with Rahman’s India visit?

New Delhi had extended an invitation to Rahman for a stand-alone sojourn to India this month, up of adjacent month’s scheduled BRICS summit. BRICS is simply a grouping of large emerging economies, presently chaired by India.

Since Rahman took office, determination person been respective exchanges betwixt apical ministers and diplomats from some sides. India appointed Dinesh Trivedi, a erstwhile curate and subordinate of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), arsenic its envoy to Dhaka successful a uncommon governmental assignment to the cardinal post.

Last Tuesday, Trivedi appealed to Rahman’s government, arguing that the Indian ngo is not asking Dhaka “to hide the past”, successful an evident notation to Hasina’s exile successful India. “Keep the past and benignant retired the differences of the past. But determination on. Don’t get stagnant,” helium added.

At a reception hosted by the Indian High Commission successful Dhaka, Trivedi said that Modi wanted Rahman’s sojourn to beryllium “memorable”.

But those plans for a sojourn were already derailed aft Dhaka took offence to Hasina virtually addressing a presser astatine the Foreign Correspondents’ Club successful New Delhi connected August 5, marking 2 years of her ouster.

India clarified that it had thing to bash with the event, but to nary avail.

Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Tarique Rahman arrives for a gathering with Chinese President Xi Jinping astatine the Great Hall of the People successful Beijing, China, June 26, 2026 [Tingshu Wang/Reuters]

What person some countries said?

Both capitals person been tight-lipped astir Rahman’s visit. “I person thing to accidental close now,” said India’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, responding to a question astir Rahman’s visit.

Speaking astatine an lawsuit connected Saturday, India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said India and Bangladesh’s bilateral ties indispensable conscionable the “test of communal interest”.

“It has to enactment for them, it has to enactment for us,” helium said.

“There has to beryllium a tenable grade of my recognising and respecting what is their interest, conscionable arsenic I expect them besides to bash so,” Jaishankar said.

Rahman’s overseas affairs adviser, Humayun Kabir, told a Bangladeshi quality bureau that determination is “no rush” successful Dhaka to facilitate the premier minister’s sojourn to India.

Kabir added that Dhaka is inactive ascertaining what benignant of narration India wants with the recently elected authorities successful Bangladesh.

“The neighbouring state indispensable decently recognize the world of Bangladesh’s July Mass Uprising, which took spot done the sacrifices of much than 1,500 people,” helium said, referring to India sitting connected the petition for Hasina’s extradition.

Earlier this month, New Delhi had said that it was considering Hasina’s extradition petition based connected the established procedure. Both countries person an extradition treaty, but with an objection for governmental cases.

What are the points of tension?

Bangladesh has made Hasina’s extradition a large issue. Hasina’s authorities was seen arsenic particularly adjacent to India, and New Delhi’s backing of her authoritarian regularisation besides angered Bangladeshis.

Dhaka has been seeking the extradition of Hasina, who was handed a decease sentence successful absentia successful November 2025. Some analysts person accused New Delhi of utilizing it arsenic a diplomatic bargaining chip.

Bangladesh has expressed its displeasure with India for hosting Hasina and sees Hasina’s governmental speeches arsenic an interference successful its interior affairs. During the August 5 presser, Hasina said she would instrumentality to Bangladesh.

“We person requested Indian authorities to expeditiously enactment connected our petition to extradite Sheikh Hasina and different fugitive criminals,” the Bangladesh Foreign Ministry said successful an X station connected August 16.

“We reiterate that we volition proceed to prosecute our ‘Bangladesh First’ argumentation to beforehand affable bilateral relations with different countries, including our neighbours, connected the ground of sovereign equality, nationalist dignity, non-interference successful each other’s interior affairs and communal benefit.”

For New Delhi, Dhaka inching person to Pakistan aft decades of strained ties is simply a large diplomatic setback. India played a large relation successful the enactment of Bangladesh from Pakistan successful 1971.

Shakil Ahmed, an adjunct prof of authorities and authorities astatine Dhaka’s Jahangirnagar University, noted that home authorities tends to power overseas argumentation astatine times.

“Relations betwixt India and Bangladesh are constrained by their home politics, particularly successful Dhaka,” helium said.

“People successful Bangladesh privation that immoderate narration with India should beryllium based connected self-respect and communal interests,” helium said, adding that Rahman’s authorities has been diversifying its friendships with overseas countries, including the US, China, and Pakistan.

“New Delhi saw Bangladesh arsenic 1 of India’s overseas argumentation followers,” Ahmed said, noting that that is not the lawsuit anymore. “Hasina gave India a blank cheque successful overseas relations, which is not happening anymore.”

India’s Hindu nationalist government’s propulsion to obstruction the 4,096km-long (2,545-mile) borderline with Bangladesh has besides strained ties. Anti-Bangladesh rhetoric by ruling enactment officials has further antagonised Dhaka.

India has been deporting what it calls undocumented Bangladeshi immigrants crossed its borders. Dhaka has accused New Delhi of pushing radical extrajudicially into Bangladesh without diplomatic verification.

What’s up for India-Bangladesh ties?

Sanjay Bhardwaj, a prof of South Asian studies astatine the Jawaharlal Nehru University successful Delhi, told Al Jazeera that Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Rahman is playing to the assemblage by stalling his maiden India visit.

Hasina’s lawsuit is 1 of governmental persecution, said Bhardwaj, arsenic her ain authorities chased Rahman – who lived for the past 17 years successful London, the United Kingdom, including each of Hasina’s years successful powerfulness – with respective transgression cases.

“India has been affirmative to cultivate and person a developmental concern with Bangladesh, with nary reluctance to make the economical participation,” helium added. “But Rahman is funny successful authorities and not reasoning astir the improvement of Bangladesh.”

Hasina’s extradition is simply a contentious issue, helium said, adding that some capitals indispensable determination beyond this to support a productive bilateral relationship.

Sreeradha Datta, a prof specialising successful South Asian studies astatine India’s OP Jindal Global University, said that some countries request to talk, since “there is nary alternative”.

As neighbours, “they bash not person a prime to disengage”, she said, adding that simply the transition of clip volition not repair the relations.

India is acrophobic astir the Mecca defence pact, Datta told Al Jazeera, “But however tin 1 person immoderate power erstwhile determination is nary dialog and engagement?”

“The archetypal warmth diluted successful nationalistic sound connected some sides,” Datta said, referring to archetypal interactions, including an Indian delegation led by Jaishankar visiting Dhaka past twelvemonth for the ceremonial of Rahman’s mother, Khaleda Zia.

Datta argued that New Delhi needs to travel to presumption with a caller world that the authorities of Bangladesh whitethorn not stock the aforesaid warmth arsenic the 1 nether Hasina did. “But that doesn’t matter,” she said. “These are neighbours, and a narration based connected objectives oregon interests is what volition instrumentality it forward.”