India on Tuesday said Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman received two separate invitations from New Delhi — one for a bilateral visit and another to attend the BRICS Summit as chair of the Bay of Bengal
Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC).
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the invitations were issued separately, contradicting Dhaka’s recent claim that Rahman was not invited to the BRICS Summit.
“We had invited the Prime Minister of Bangladesh on a bilateral visit, and subsequently, he was invited for the BRICS Summit as chair of BIMSTEC. So, he had received two invitations, one on the bilateral side and the other for the BRICS Summit as well,” Jaiswal said on Tuesday.
The statement assumes significance as Bangladesh had said last Thursday that Rahman would not participate in the BRICS Summit hosted by India because he had not been invited to the event, with the invitation instead extended to the BIMSTEC chair.
The two-day BRICS Summit concluded in New Delhi on Sunday. India had invited Rahman to attend the summit as chairman of BIMSTEC, while a separate bilateral invitation had been in place since February.
The latest exchange comes amid mild tensions in India-Bangladesh ties. On Sunday, Bangladesh State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humayun Kabir said Dhaka needed to “end its India fascination” and reset ties with New Delhi.
“We have to get out of the India fascination. India is just another country, and Bangladesh wants good bilateral relations with it,” Kabir said.
Responding to a question, the minister added: “Breakfast in India, lunch in India, dinner in India — then when will you eat your own food?”
Kabir also said Rahman is scheduled to leave for New York on September 21 to attend the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly and will stay there until September 26.
