Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina calls on BJP leader LK Advani

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh on Sunday paid a courtesy call to Bharat Ratna and veteran BJP leader LK Advani at the latter's residence in New Delhi.

PM Hasina is in India to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi scheduled to be held today evening.

She is one of the distinguished guests invited to New Delhi to attend the much-awaited ceremony.

PM Hasina was the first foreign leader to arrive here for the ceremony. She landed in the national capital on Saturday afternoon.

The veteran BJP leader's daughter, Pratibha Advani was also present as PM Hasina called upon him.

Prime Minister Modi was elected leader of the National Democratic Alliance on Friday and also met veteran BJP leader and Bharat Ratna Lal Krishna Advani at his residence.

PM Modi greeted the veteran BJP leader. He also met senior party leader Murli Manohar Joshi at his residence.

PM Modi presented bouquets to the two veteran BJP leaders. The meetings with two senior BJP leaders came ahead of PM Modi staking claim to form his third successive government.

PM Modi is set to be sworn in as Prime Minister for the third consecutive term on June 9, the Rashtrapati Bhavan said on Friday.

On Wednesday, PM Modi invited his Bangladeshi counterpart to attend his swearing-in ceremony on Sunday. Sheikh Hasina accepted the invitation.

Over the years, India and Bangladesh have forged a multifaceted relationship, marked by a shared history, culture, and geographical proximity.

Several leaders and state heads of neighbourhood region and Indian Ocean region have been invited for PM Modi's swearing-in ceremony as distinguished guests, a testament to India's 'Neighbourhood First' policy.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in an official statement on Saturday said, "President of Sri Lanka, Ranil Wickremesinghe; President of Maldives, Mohamed Muizzu; Vice-President of Seychelles, Ahmed Afif; Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina; Prime Minister of Mauritius, Pravind Kumar Jugnauth; Prime Minister of Nepal, Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda'; and Prime Minister of Bhutan, Tshering Tobgay, have accepted the invitation to attend."

Additionally, the MEA mentioned that besides participating in the swearing-in ceremony, the leaders will also grace a Banquet hosted by President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan, later in the same evening.