Bangladesh-India ties face fresh uncertainty over Hasina issue

Bangladesh-India relations are facing fresh uncertainty amid developments surrounding ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina's possible return home and the postponement of the two countries' fifth round of consular talks.

Hasina, who has been living in India since her ouster in August 2024, has drawn renewed attention after her legal advisers reportedly applied to the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi for information related to obtaining a new passport and national identity card (NID) on her behalf.

The developments have sparked questions over whether she will return to Bangladesh in December, as previously indicated, whether she will be able to do so, and whether the Bangladesh government will respond to the application submitted by her legal advisers.

Meanwhile, reports of the postponement of the fifth round of Bangladesh-India consular talks have added to the speculation about the state of bilateral relations.

Foreign Ministry sources in Dhaka, however, said the decision to postpone the meeting had been taken before Hasina's email application came to light.

A spokesperson for the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi told several Bangladeshi media outlets that the consular dialogue had initially been scheduled to take place in Dhaka at the end of October but was deferred following discussions between the two countries. Bangladesh has now proposed a date towards the end of this month, taking into account its convenience.

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Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at his weekly briefing on Friday that the next Bangladesh-India consular dialogue would be held on a mutually convenient date. “Matters relating to revised travel arrangements would also be discussed at the meeting,” he added.

He said India remained ready to discuss all bilateral issues with Bangladesh under the existing institutional framework.

The postponement came amid widespread discussion over the application submitted by Hasina's lawyers to the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi seeking information needed for passport and identity documents.

Earlier, Sheikh Hasina's virtual press conference in New Delhi emerged as a major source of discomfort between the two governments.

The press conference was organised on 5 August by the Foreign Correspondents' Club of South Asia (FCC South Asia) in New Delhi.

On the night of the event, the Bangladesh Foreign Ministry issued a strongly worded statement and announced the postponement of Tarique Rahman's visit to India. The Indian government, however, said it had no connection with the press conference.

Former diplomat Mahfuzur Rahman told BBC Bangla that developments surrounding the former prime minister's return to Bangladesh had slowed the momentum towards normalising relations between the two countries.

He also believes the developments could slow preparations for a possible visit to India by Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.