FM terms Delhi airport incident unfortunate, unexpected

Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman on Monday termed the Delhi airport incident involving Prime Minister’s Adviser on Policy and Strategy Affairs and Information and Broadcasting Zahed Ur Rahman “unfortunate” and said the government is taking appropriate steps regarding the matter.

“It is an unexpected incident, unfortunate, too,” he said while speaking to reporters at the foreign ministry in the capital.

Khalilur indicated that foreign ministry would clarify its position through an official statement later in the day.

Zahed returned home on Monday after being stopped by Indian immigration authorities at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport on Sunday evening when his name was reportedly flagged during a security check.

According to diplomatic and media sources, the adviser was questioned and kept waiting after his name appeared on a watchlist during routine screening.

Although Indian authorities later allowed him to proceed with his visit, he decided to return to Bangladesh instead of continuing his journey, sources said.

The adviser was travelling on a regular Bangladeshi passport with a SAARC visa and was not carrying a diplomatic passport.

As there was no direct flight to Dhaka on Sunday night, Zahed returned home via Colombo.

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He had travelled to India to attend the 28th Meeting of the Committee of Senior Officials (CSO) of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), being held in New Delhi on 15-16 June.

The meeting brought together senior government officials from IORA member states to review progress, discuss regional priorities and advance cooperation across the Indian Ocean region under the theme “Innovation, Openness, Resilience and Adaptability”.

The CSO is the second-highest decision-making body of IORA and serves as the organisation’s principal coordinating mechanism.