PM Modi meets Bangladesh's Chief Advisor Yunus in Bangkok amid diplomatic reset

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Bangladesh Chief Advisor Mohammad Yunus in Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, on Friday (April 4) during the BIMSTEC summit. This meeting is the first time between the two leaders after the overthrow of Sheikh Hasina's government in Bangladesh. It is worth noting that on August 5, 2024 last year, Sheikh Hasina left Bangladesh and came to India, after which relations between India and Bangladesh cooled down. However, this time during the BIMSTEC summit, Dhaka requested bilateral talks, which India accepted.

Earlier, a PTI report said that a meeting could take place between Prime Minister Modi and Yunus, although there was no official statement from the Ministry of External Affairs on this. The two leaders were also seen sitting at the same table at the BIMSTEC dinner held on April 3, which further fueled speculation. Yunus's remarks about India's northeastern states while attending China's Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) had further complicated the already tense relations. But today's meeting has indicated a possible change in the relations between the two countries.

The meeting lasted for about 40 minutes, in which many important issues were discussed. This was the first high-level meeting between India and the interim government of Bangladesh. Let us tell you that Sheikh Hasina had to leave power due to nationwide student movements and her 16-year-old Awami League government was ousted from power. Mohammad Yunus has claimed that Dhaka has sent official requests to India for the extradition of Sheikh Hasina, but so far there has been no formal response from New Delhi.