Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has called for a more conducive environment to strengthen relations with India, as Dhaka continues to push New Delhi over the extradition of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who has been living in India since the fall of her government in August 2024.
Rahman made the remarks on Monday during his first meeting with India’s new High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Dinesh Trivedi.
According to a statement from the Bangladeshi Prime Minister’s Office, Rahman “emphasised the need to create a conducive environment to further advance the bilateral relations between the two countries.”
The meeting comes at a sensitive time in Bangladesh-India relations, with the issue of Hasina’s continued stay in India remaining one of the biggest points of disagreement between the two neighbours.
Bangladesh has formally asked India to extradite Hasina, who is facing legal proceedings in Bangladesh and was sentenced to death in November.
Dhaka renewed its demand shortly after Hasina recently appeared in an online audio conference, marking her first major interaction with the media since she fled Bangladesh. During the event, Hasina reportedly reiterated that she would return to Bangladesh in December.
Her continued political activities while in India have angered Bangladesh authorities. The Bangladeshi Foreign Ministry strongly criticised the event, saying it was deeply hurtful and expressing outrage that Hasina had been given an opportunity to address the public from Indian territory.
India, however, has maintained that it is examining Bangladesh’s extradition request in accordance with its legal and judicial procedures.
The Indian High Commission said Trivedi reaffirmed India’s commitment to working with Bangladesh in a “positive, constructive and forward-looking manner.”
Rahman’s latest comments therefore appear to combine two objectives: maintaining stable relations with Bangladesh’s largest neighbour while continuing to pressure India over Hasina’s extradition.
The developments could become a major test for the relationship between Dhaka and New Delhi as both countries attempt to move beyond the political tensions that followed Hasina’s removal from power.
