BNP chief Tarique Rahman (PTI photo)
NEW DELHI: With Muhammad Yunus’ departure from the power centre in Dhaka, steps are under way to “fully restore” all Indian visa services, India’s senior consular official in Sylhet, Aniruddha Das, has confirmed.Aniruddha Roy on Thursday assured full cooperation to strengthen India-Bangladesh relations and said efforts are being made to ease visa services.Speaking at the Sylhet District Press Club, he said medical and double-entry visas are currently being issued, and steps are under way to resume other categories, including travel visas.“Medical and double-entry visas are being issued now, and steps are under way to resume other categories, including travel visas,” BD News24 quoted him saying.He said India-Bangladesh ties are based on mutual respect and shared interests.“India-Bangladesh relations stand on the foundation of mutual respect and honour. The people of both countries will be the principal stakeholders of a stable, positive, constructive, long-term and mutually beneficial relationship,” he said.He added that both countries share cultural links and common goals, and cooperation can help create new opportunities. “We should transform our geographical and cultural proximity, growing economic capacity, and future aspirations into new opportunities through cooperation,” he said.He also said journalists can play an important role in strengthening ties between the two countries.“Through objective reporting and constructive criticism, journalists can further reinforce and strengthen this relationship,” he added.Days earlier, Bangladesh entered a new political phase after Tarique Rahman took charge as the country’s new prime minister. Following the Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s landslide victory, securing a two-thirds majority, Rahman invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend his swearing-in ceremony.Prime Minister Modi congratulated Rahman on his party’s victory and later invited him to visit India after he took oath.India-Bangladesh relations had come under strain after Sheikh Hasina’s exile in August 2024. Ties were affected during the interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, particularly after India provided refuge to the former prime minister Hasina. This led to tensions between the two countries, with several reports highlighting diplomatic unease in recent months.India had also expressed concern over incidents of violence against minorities, especially the Hindu community, during the period of unrest in Bangladesh under Yunus’ interim government.
