India declared on Friday that Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri will travel to Dhaka on December 9 for foreign office discussions, amidst increased tensions between the two countries regarding the treatment of the Hindu minority in Bangladesh.
“The foreign secretary is set to visit Bangladesh for foreign office discussions on December 9. He is scheduled to meet his counterpart and participate in several other meetings,” stated external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal during a media briefing.
The organized discussions, led by the foreign secretaries, are intended to tackle critical bilateral matters. “We look forward to this meeting,” Jaiswal further commented.
This signifies the first high-level Indian visit to Bangladesh since Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus took charge of the caretaker government in August, following extensive protests that resulted in former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigning.
Tensions have escalated in light of targeted assaults on Bangladesh’s Hindu minority and the detention of Bangladeshi monk Chinmoy Krishna Das on sedition allegations. India has communicated its hope for a “fair and transparent legal process” in Das’s situation, with Jaiswal asserting, “We hope that these legal rights will be honored and that the trial will be fair and transparent. ”
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India has also raised alarms over escalating extremist discourse and growing violence against Hindus, urging the interim government to meet its duty to safeguard minorities.
Relations further deteriorated after protests in Agartala ended with a group invading the Bangladeshi consulate, vandalizing property, and desecrating the national flag. While India deemed the event “deeply regrettable,” Bangladesh summoned Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma to voice its protest against the violation and recalled its senior diplomats for discussions.
