DHAKA: Touhid Hossain, the Foreign Affairs Advisor to the interim government in Bangladesh led by Muhammad Yunus, is expected to meet External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar on the sidelines of the Indian Ocean Conference being held in Muscat next week, local media in Dhaka reported on Monday.
"According to diplomatic sources, during this meeting, Bangladesh would like to convey a message aimed at preventing further strains in the relationship between both nations, " reported Prothom Alo, Bangladesh's leading Bengali daily.
The 8th Indian Ocean Conference is being organised by India Foundation in association with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Oman on February 16-17 in Muscat, Oman. The theme for this year of the conference, which serves as a key platform for regional dialogue, is 'Voyages to New Horizons of Maritime Partnership'.
EAM Jaishankar and Hossain had last met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York in September, marking the first high-level engagement between India and Bangladesh's interim government after former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's ouster in August 2024.
Even though India continues to bat for normalisation of relations between the two neighbouring countries, the current regime in Dhaka has faced massive criticism for making groundless accusations and also targetting the Hindu community in Bangladesh since the mass uprising of students and the dramatic fall of Hasina's Awami League government on August 5, last year.
In December, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri visited Dhaka on a day-long visit, conveying New Delhi's concerns, especially those related to the safety and welfare of minorities in Bangladesh, to the top leadership of the interim government.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) stated that, during these meetings, Misri highlighted India's support for a democratic, stable, peaceful, progressive and inclusive Bangladesh while reiterating New Delhi's willingness to build a positive and constructive relationship with Bangladesh, based on mutual trust and respect and mutual sensitivity to each other’s concerns and interests.
"Foreign Secretary emphasised that people are the main stakeholders in India-Bangladesh relations, and noted that India's development cooperation and multifaceted engagements with Bangladesh, including in the areas of connectivity, trade, power, energy and capacity building, are all geared towards the benefit of the people of Bangladesh, " read a statement issued by the MEA after the conclusion of Misri's visit on December 9.
During his visit, the Foreign Secretary raised some regrettable incidents of attacks on cultural, religious and diplomatic properties in Bangladesh and also highlighted that India desires positive, constructive and mutually beneficial ties with the country.
Last Friday, Nural Islam, the Bangladesh Acting High Commissioner to India, was summoned by MEA to the South Block after Dhaka asked New Delhi to stop Hasina from making "fabricated" statements.
India made it clear to the Bangladeshi diplomat that the comments attributed to the former Bangladesh PM have been made in her individual capacity in which India has no role to play.
"Conflating this with the Government of India's position is not going to help add positivity to bilateral relations, " said MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal.
"It was conveyed that India desires a positive, constructive and mutually beneficial relationship with Bangladesh, which has been reiterated several times in recent high-level meetings. It is, however, regrettable that regular statements made by Bangladesh authorities continue to portray India negatively, holding us responsible for internal governance issues. These statements by Bangladesh are in fact responsible for the persistent negativity. While the Government of India will make efforts for a mutually beneficial relationship we expect that Bangladesh will reciprocate similarly without vitiating the atmosphere, " he added.