S Jaishankar likely to meet his Bangladesh counterpart at UN

External affairs minister S Jaishankar may meet his Bangladesh counterpart Touhid Hossain next week, as both sides remain in touch diplomatically to finalise the proposed meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. Jaishankar is expected to use the meeting to underscore the need to quickly restore law and order in the country, express concern over the threat to minorities, particularly Hindus, while also reaffirming India’s commitment to work with a democratic and peaceful Bangladesh despite the recent tensions in ties.

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Jaishankar-Hossain talks will likely be the first high-level, in-person engagement between India and the interim government in Dhaka since the ouster of Sheikh Hasina. India has so far not officially ruled out a meeting between PM Narendra Modi and Bangladesh Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus but it looks unlikely apparently because of scheduling constraints.

Modi will address the UN Summit of the Future on September 23 and leave for India the same day. Jaishankar, however, will be in New York to deliver India’s national statement at the UNGA on September 28.

The meeting will be closely followed to also see what issues Hossain raises with India. Both Hossain and Yunus have suggested that Bangladesh wants Hasina extradited but Dhaka has to do a lot of paperwork before approaching India with an official extradition request. However, with key political parties like the BNP also seeking Hasina’s extradition, her extended stay in India is unlikely to help India’s efforts to get the relationship back on to an even keel.

The Indian government has also taken note of some of the “unhelpful’’ remarks made by a few of the top functionaries of the interim government, starting with Yunus himself. The chief advisor has twice said that the issue about attacks on minorities are exaggerated, calling upon India to not remain captivated by the “narrative that portrays every other political party except Awami League as Islamist’’ or that Bangladesh is safe with only Hasina at the helm.

Also read: Dhaka on Hasina's stay in Delhi: 'Everything doesn't go by law'

India is also wary of the interim government’s efforts to, as Hossain said in an interview this week, build a normal relationship with Pakistan after Hasina’s exit. Yunus has sought a revival of SAARC, which remains stalled because of India’s opposition to cross-border terrorism, and reports from Dhaka say he’s likely to have a bilateral meeting with Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif in New York next week.


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