Bangladesh Resumes Visa Services at India Missions as Ties Improve

Following the Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s (BNP) win in recent general elections in the South Asian country, ties with India have taken a positive turn. Bangladesh has now resumed full visa and consular services at its India missions in New Delhi, Agartala and Siliguri.

Amid concerns surrounding security and protests near diplomatic premises, services had been suspended since late December last year. Operations were indefinitely suspended on December 22 at the Bangladesh high commission in New Delhi and the assistant high commission in Agartala due to “unavoidable circumstances”. The Siliguri-based visa application centre also halted services soon after.

The resumption of services comes after Dhaka witnessed a major political shift with BNP’s Tarique Rahman, son of the late Khaleda Zia, taking the oath of office as the Prime Minister, replacing the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus.

Bilateral relations with New Delhi during Yunus’ term had deteriorated further amid apprehensions from Bangladesh against India over the ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and attacks on Hindu minorities in Bangladesh.

Early Intent

The resumption of visa services is an early indication that the new government intends to reset relations with India and do away with the anti-India sentiment that had taken over during the interim government’s tenure, which oversaw the transition after political turbulence led to the downfall of the Sheikh Hasina administration.

The thaw in ties has been corroborated at the leadership, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to and congratulated Tarique Rahman shortly after the latter’s swearing-in. PM Modi also formally invited Rahman to visit India along with his family at the earliest convenience. The invitation was conveyed by Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla through a personal letter when he represented India at Rahman’s oath-taking ceremony in Dhaka.

Congratulating Tarique Rahman on BNP’s win, PM Modi termed it a reflection of the public’s trust in his leadership and stated that he was eager to collaborate on connectivity, trade, energy, and regional cooperation.

The recent developments are being seen as a positive turn of events in New Delhi-Dhaka relations, which have historically been good but faced hardships under the Muhammad Yunus-led administration. The restoration of visa services will help in restoring people-to-people contacts and boost economic exchanges between the two neighbours.