Bangladesh wants a “conducive environment” created before Prime Minister Tarique Rahman visits India, including the extradition of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who is currently in India after being sentenced to death for crimes against humanity.
Dhaka has also sought the extradition of suspects accused of killing Inqilab Mancha spokesperson Sharif Osman Hadi under the bilateral extradition treaty.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson AKM Shahidul Karim conveyed the government’s position at a media briefing at the ministry on Sunday.
He said officials from Bangladesh and India had been in discussions for several weeks over Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s proposed bilateral visit, but the process was disrupted after Sheikh Hasina was recently allowed to publicly address in Delhi.
“We have made our position clear. We believe a conducive environment needs to be created for the visit,” Shahidul said.
“To this end, we have requested the Indian authorities to take prompt action on our requests for the extradition of Sheikh Hasina and other fugitives,” he added.
He said India should hand over the suspects accused of killing Osman Hadi under the bilateral extradition treaty. “We are waiting for their response,” he said.
The spokesperson said Bangladesh would continue to pursue its “Bangladesh First” policy in developing friendly relations with neighbouring and other countries based on sovereign equality, national dignity, non-interference in each other’s internal affairs and mutual benefit.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has invited Tarique Rahman to attend the outreach session of the BRICS Summit, scheduled to be held in Delhi in September, in his capacity as BIMSTEC chair. India also invited him for a bilateral visit in February.
Uncertainty had emerged over Tarique Rahman’s participation in the BRICS Summit after Sheikh Hasina was allowed to address an event in Delhi. However, diplomatic efforts by Dhaka and New Delhi later revived discussions on the prime minister’s proposed bilateral visit.