Amid a backdrop of rapidly deteriorating ties between India and Bangladesh following the ouster of Sheikh Hasina’s government last August, a high-stakes meeting took place between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bangladesh’s new Chief Adviser, Muhammad Yunus, on the sidelines of the BIMSTEC Summit in Thailand. This marked the first direct engagement between the two nations at the top leadership level since the regime change in Dhaka and comes at a time when relations are increasingly strained across multiple fronts — political, diplomatic, and ethnic.
Requested by Dhaka, the meeting was seen as a diplomatic olive branch from Bangladesh, as Yunus sought to cool tensions that have been simmering for months. According to a statement from Yunus’s press secretary, the discussions were “constructive, productive and fruitful,” and touched upon several core bilateral issues, including the Ganga water-sharing treaty and the extradition of deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who is believed to be residing in India following her dramatic ouster.
Yunus also raised Hasina’s recent incendiary statements allegedly made from Indian territory — remarks that have reportedly angered Dhaka’s new leadership. While New Delhi has made no formal comment on Hasina's status or her comments, the issue continues to be a source of friction, especially since Bangladesh sees her presence as a potential flashpoint for domestic unrest.
Footage from the summit showed the two leaders exchanging a firm handshake before proceeding to closed-door bilateral talks. Their cordial body language during a photo-op, complete with smiles and warm gestures, was a notable contrast to the underlying geopolitical tensions. Yunus presented a framed photograph to Modi from 2015, showing the Prime Minister awarding him a gold medal at the 102nd Indian Science Congress — a symbolic gesture perhaps meant to rekindle past goodwill and personal rapport.
The optics of the meeting were anticipated since the two had been seated next to each other during the BIMSTEC leaders’ dinner the night before, giving rise to speculation of a possible “pull-aside” — a casual diplomatic term for an informal discussion between world leaders.
Interestingly, just a week prior, PM Modi had written a letter to Yunus on the occasion of Bangladesh’s National Day, emphasizing the importance of “mutual sensitivity” in bilateral relations. This could be read as a subtle yet firm nudge toward Dhaka to tone down rhetoric and realign with regional priorities that New Delhi deems crucial, especially given the recent controversies involving Yunus.
Yunus stirred controversy during a four-day visit to China, where he made provocative remarks about India’s northeast. He claimed that the seven northeastern states are “landlocked” and dependent on Bangladesh as their sole “guardian of the ocean.” In an implicit invitation to Beijing, Yunus called for China to expand its economic footprint in the region, positioning Bangladesh as the “gateway to the Indian Ocean.” These comments triggered sharp reactions from Indian officials, including Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and the Ministry of External Affairs.
In what appeared to be a pointed rebuttal, Modi reaffirmed India’s northeast as central to BIMSTEC, while External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar emphasized that regional connectivity should be based on “integrated outlooks” and not “cherry-picking.” This was widely interpreted as a veiled warning to Bangladesh about aligning too closely with China at the expense of regional balance and India’s core interests.
Beyond geopolitics and trade, sectarian violence in Bangladesh has also emerged as a flashpoint. In recent months, there has been a surge in attacks on Hindu minorities, including the destruction of temples, such as ISKCON, arrests of monks, and killings attributed to radical Islamist elements. The Indian government revealed in Parliament that 23 Hindus have been killed and over 150 temples attacked since August 5 last year. These developments have fueled public outrage in India and placed additional pressure on the Modi government to take a firmer stance on minority protection in neighboring countries.
The Yunus-Modi meeting, while symbolically important, is unlikely to resolve these deep-rooted issues in the near term. However, it signals a willingness — at least on Dhaka’s part — to reengage diplomatically with India, even as it hedges its bets with China. For New Delhi, the challenge will be to navigate this evolving relationship carefully, balancing realpolitik with regional stability, while ensuring its northeast does not become a pawn in a larger geopolitical game.
