Bangladesh PM’s advisor returned from Delhi Airport, did India give a strong message to the BNP government?

India briefly detained Bangladesh Prime Minister’s Policy and Strategy Advisor Zahed Ur Rahman at New Delhi’s IGI Airport before allowing her to enter the country. However, according to Bangladeshi media reports, Bangladesh Prime Minister’s aide Tariq Rahman decided to return to Dhaka via Colombo.

This is the first incident of its kind involving an official associated with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) government, which came to power only a few months ago. Bangladeshi news outlet ‘Prothom Alo’, quoting diplomatic sources in Dhaka and New Delhi, reported that Zahid Ur Rahman, a close aide of Tariq Rahman, was detained by Indian immigration officials for about two and a half hours upon his arrival in New Delhi on Sunday evening.

Purpose of the Visit

He had come to attend the meeting of ‘Indian Ocean Rim Association’ (IORA). The advisor came to India to attend the 28th meeting of the Senior Officials Committee of IORA, which was to be organized by India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on June 15 and 16.

Prior Notification to Indian Officials

According to ‘Prothom Alo’ report, the High Commission of Bangladesh on Friday issued a diplomatic note to India’s Ministry of External Affairs formally informing them about Zahid attending the meeting. Bangladesh High Commissioner M. Riyaz Hamidullah had also talked to the concerned Indian officials before the visit.

Detention Details

Despite being given prior information, Zahid was stopped during immigration check and made to wait for more than two hours, with no immediate reason given to him. ‘The Daily Star’, citing an Indian news channel, reported that Zahid’s name had appeared on a “security watchlist” during the verification process.

The report also noted that the Bangladeshi advisors were traveling on regular green passports with SAARC stickers instead of diplomatic passports. Although he later got approval after the intervention of higher officials, the advisor thought it better to return to Dhaka via Colombo rather than enter India.

Indian Response and Political Implications

Indian officials have not yet commented publicly on this development. The incident comes at a time when New Delhi and Dhaka are going through a new political phase in their relations, following a deterioration in bilateral relations during the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government.

Political commentator Pratim Ranjan Bose described the recent incident as an indication of New Delhi taking a tough stance towards the BNP government. He noted that this is the first time since the BNP came to power in February that India has toughened its stance.