Trivedi meets Modi amid talks over Tarique’s India visit

Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi made an unannounced trip to New Delhi and met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday amid renewed discussions over Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s possible visit to India and several pending bilateral issues.
The meeting took place at around 1:30pm in New Delhi, BBC reported, citing diplomatic sources.
According to the sources, Trivedi’s visit was aimed at conveying Dhaka’s latest position on Tarique Rahman’s possible India visit to the Indian leadership, along with other issues of bilateral interest.
Trivedi reportedly travelled to New Delhi on a late-night flight from Dhaka on Monday. Neither the Indian High Commission in Dhaka, India’s Ministry of External Affairs nor the Prime Minister’s Office has officially commented on his visit or meeting with Modi.
Tarique’s proposed visit to India has been under discussion between the two countries for months but has yet to materialise. Trivedi said last week that India’s invitation to the Bangladesh prime minister remained open and that the visit would take place at a mutually convenient time.
The possible visit comes amid several outstanding issues between Dhaka and New Delhi, including Bangladesh’s demand for the extradition of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who has been staying in India.
Tarique raised the extradition issue during his first meeting with Trivedi in August. He also stressed the need to create a conducive environment for advancing bilateral relations.
Another major issue is the renewal of the Ganges Water Sharing Treaty, signed by Bangladesh and India on 12 December 1996 for 30 years. The treaty is due to expire on 12 December this year.

India told its Parliament in February that formal discussions between the two countries on renewing the treaty had yet to begin. More recently, however, India has said water-sharing issues, including the Ganges treaty, would be addressed through the Joint Rivers Commission and other established bilateral mechanisms, while technical-level discussions have continued.
Trivedi’s Delhi visit is also notable because of his unusual diplomatic profile. A former Indian railway minister and minister of state for health and family welfare, he was appointed India’s high commissioner to Bangladesh as a political appointee. He assumed office after presenting his credentials on 25 June.
‘Visit will take place at convenient time’
State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir recently said Prime Minister Tarique Rahman would visit India on a bilateral trip at a convenient time.
Speaking to reporters, he said Dhaka wanted the visit to take place in a favourable environment and through an appropriate bilateral framework.
“Dhaka wants the visit to take place in a favourable environment and through an appropriate bilateral framework,” he said when asked about the possibility of the prime minister visiting India this year.
He did not, however, mention any specific timeframe.
“No problem can be resolved through just one phone call. We are holding discussions, and things are moving forward positively,” the state minister said.
Praising Trivedi, Humaiun Kobir said the Indian high commissioner was trying to understand the current situation in Bangladesh and that Dhaka expected New Delhi to give due importance to his assessment.
“India’s High Commissioner here is doing a good job; he is making efforts,” he said.
“I hope New Delhi will take a positive approach towards him and his views and analysis of the current situation in Bangladesh,” he added.