Bangladesh PM was invited for Brics meet and bilateral visit: Govt

New Delhi: The government firmly stated on Tuesday that it had extended invitations to Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman for both the Brics summit and a bilateral visit. A letter dated July 14, obtained by The Times of India (TOI), confirmed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had extended the invitation to Rahman in his capacity as Bimstec chair, expressing that his participation would greatly enhance the discussions.

Upon Rahman's swearing-in as Bangladesh's Prime Minister, Modi extended an additional invitation for a bilateral visit. Dhaka, however, withdrew from negotiations to finalize the visit dates, reportedly due to India's insufficient commitment to Sheikha Hasina's extradition. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) responded to Bangladesh's assertion that the invitation was for a bilateral visit, not the Bimstec chair.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal clarified that Rahman had indeed received two invitations - one for a bilateral visit and another for the Brics summit. Modi emphasized in his letter that this year's summit holds special significance as it marks the 20th anniversary of Brics' formal establishment.