"No final decision yet" on Tarique Rahman`s possible Delhi visit

Despite a flurry of Indian media reports suggesting Prime Minister Tarique Rahman would visit New Delhi between 23 and 25 August, his press secretary A.A.M. Saleh (Saleh Shibli) told Reuters on Friday that no final decision has yet been made, stressing that while diplomatic talks between the neighbours remain ongoing, no concrete date or protocol has been finalised.

Since assuming office following BNP's February electoral victory, Rahman's government has pursued a sustained effort to normalise and strengthen ties with New Delhi, with his prospective inaugural visit to India under discussion in diplomatic circles for several weeks. Dhaka, however, has repeatedly insisted that a more favourable diplomatic climate is a prerequisite for the trip -- a stance rooted in strained relations dating back to the 2024 mass uprising that ousted then-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who subsequently took refuge in India. Hasina was sentenced to death in absentia last November by the International Crimes Tribunal on charges of crimes against humanity, and Dhaka has since repeatedly and formally demanded her extradition along with that of other fugitives -- requests India says remain under consideration.

Tensions flared anew on 5 August when Hasina delivered a virtual address at an online event in New Delhi marking the second anniversary of the July uprising, during which she declared her intention to return to Bangladesh in December -- a statement that provoked sharp condemnation from Dhaka and hardened its insistence that a conducive diplomatic environment, including progress on extradition and the handover of suspects in the killing of Sharif Osman Hadi, remains essential before any visit can proceed. Compounding the uncertainty, India's Rashtrapati Bhavan briefly issued and then abruptly withdrew a notification hinting at visit preparations, an episode that has stoked fresh speculation among analysts; when pressed on the matter at Friday's weekly briefing, Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal offered no fresh comment.

Read More: Delhi withdraws notice on PM`s possible visit within an hour

Diplomatic sources note that a 10 August meeting between Rahman and Indian High Commissioner Dinesh Trivedi may have influenced the trip's shifting contours, while Rahman has also been invited, in his capacity as current BIMSTEC chairman, to the BRICS outreach session in New Delhi this September -- though his in-person attendance remains officially unconfirmed. Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman, meanwhile, is set to travel to the United States around 27–28 August to preside over a high-level UN session, leaving the fate of Rahman's prospective first India visit still very much unresolved amid the ongoing extradition standoff.