Bangladesh recalls envoy from India amid rising diplomatic strain
Bangladesh’s interim government has recalled its High Commissioner to India, M Riaz Hamidullah, to Dhaka for consultations as tensions escalate between the two neighbouring countries.
Officials familiar with the move said the envoy returned to Dhaka late Monday night after receiving an urgent directive from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The recall is intended to assess recent developments and review the direction of Bangladesh–India relations, which have come under strain over the past two weeks.
Sources at the foreign ministry confirmed that the consultations would focus on the diplomatic fallout from a series of exchanges between Dhaka and New Delhi, particularly over allegations of violence against religious minorities in Bangladesh.
India on Friday voiced strong concern over what it described as repeated attacks on minority communities, including Hindus, Christians and Buddhists, in Bangladesh. Addressing the media in New Delhi, Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the situation was being closely monitored and described the reported incidents as disturbing.
Dhaka has firmly rejected those allegations, accusing certain groups in India of spreading exaggerated and misleading narratives about minority issues in Bangladesh. The dispute has triggered protests by Hindu nationalist groups in several Indian cities, some of which targeted Bangladeshi diplomatic missions.
Citing security concerns, Bangladesh temporarily suspended visa and consular services at its missions in New Delhi, Siliguri and Agartala. In an unprecedented diplomatic exchange, both countries summoned each other’s high commissioners on December 23, marking the first such tit-for-tat move in their bilateral history.
Bangladesh’s foreign ministry spokesperson, SM Mahbubul Alam, responded to India’s remarks by calling them motivated and baseless. He urged Indian authorities and media outlets to refrain from what he termed misinformation and propaganda, stressing that Bangladesh remains committed to protecting the rights of all its citizens.
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