- Prime Minister Narendra Modi invited to Bangladesh PM Tarique Rahman’s oath ceremony on Feb 17
- Leaders from 12 countries including China, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia also invited to the event
- Modi may skip ceremony due to talks scheduled with French President Emmanuel Macron on the same day
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is among the world leaders invited by Bangladesh for the swearing-in ceremony of new PM Tarique Rahman, whose Bangladesh Nationalist Party secured a decisive verdict in the parliamentary elections this week, sources told NDTV. The oath-taking event is scheduled for Feb. 17.
Along with India, the heads of states of 12 other countries — China, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Malaysia, Brunei, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives, and Bhutan — have been issued invites by Muhammad Yunus, the chief adviser of the interim Bangladesh government.
Modi, however, may not travel to Dhaka as he is scheduled to hold talks with French President Emmanuel Macron in Mumbai on Feb. 17. In his place, Instead, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar or Vice President CP Radhakrishnan may attend the oath-taking ceremony, NDTV learnt from sources.
The event in Dhaka will be significant from a geopolitical perspective, as Bangladesh's new leader has indicated at maintaining equal relations with all key neighbours, including China, Pakistan and India. Despite the friction in bilateral ties with New Delhi over the past couple of years, Rahman spoke to Modi on Friday after winning the landslide mandate.
During the telephonic conversation, Modi underlined the commitment towards "peace, prosperity and progress".
"Delighted to speak with Mr. Tarique Rahman. I congratulated him on the remarkable victory in the Bangladesh elections. I conveyed my best wishes and support in his endeavour to fulfil the aspirations of the people of Bangladesh," the Indian PM in a post on X.
"As two close neighbours with deep-rooted historical and cultural ties, I reaffirmed India's continued commitment to the peace, progress, and prosperity of both our peoples," he added.
Notably, the BNP has returned to power after a gap of nearly two decades. The election which it swept was the first to be held since the ouster of Awami League leader Sheikh Hasina in a student-led protest in 2024.
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