National Security Adviser Travels to New Delhi a Day Earlier

Bangladesh’s National Security Adviser, Dr Khalilur Rahman, has travelled to New Delhi a day ahead of his planned schedule. He was originally expected to depart on Wednesday to attend a regional dialogue on security matters, invited by India’s National Security Adviser, Ajit Doval. However, the trip was brought forward and he left Dhaka on Tuesday. He is set to return on Thursday night as per the original itinerary.

Sources familiar with the development suggest that the rescheduling may be linked to the recent death sentence handed down to Sheikh Hasina on charges of crimes against humanity. The verdict has created significant political sensitivity, and diplomatic observers believe Dhaka wished to engage New Delhi promptly to address emerging concerns.

Dr Rahman is due to participate in the Colombo Security Conclave (CSC), scheduled to be held in New Delhi on Thursday, 20 November. Prior to that conference, he is expected to meet senior figures within the Indian government on Wednesday. The interim government in Bangladesh has already asked India to repatriate Sheikh Hasina, who has taken refuge on Indian soil. Following the court verdict, Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain confirmed that Dhaka is sending a formal request to India under the relevant extradition agreement.

There is considerable curiosity about what Dr Rahman will discuss with Ajit Doval during his stay. Doval extended the original invitation last month, marking the first visit by Bangladesh’s current National Security Adviser since the formation of the interim administration some 15 months ago. That administration took office after Sheikh Hasina’s government fell in the wake of a violent student-led uprising on 5 August last year, following which the former prime minister fled to India.

Since then, diplomatic engagements between Dhaka and New Delhi have been steady. The first notable high-level contact took place in New York, where Dr S. Jaishankar met Touhid Hossain one month after the government’s collapse. This was followed by foreign secretary-level talks in Dhaka in December and an informal meeting between Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Bangkok during the BIMSTEC Summit in April.

In all these engagements, both sides carefully articulated their positions on Bangladesh’s evolving political landscape. India’s restrained reaction after Monday’s verdict against Hasina is being seen by analysts as a potentially constructive sign for bilateral relations.