Ties between Bangladesh and India, strained for more than a year after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government, show early signs of a cautious thaw as senior officials resume contact and cross-border medical travel rebounds.
Bangladesh National Security Adviser Khalilur Rahman met his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval in New Delhi on Wednesday in the first high-level bilateral engagement in months. The meeting came less than two days after a Bangladesh war-crimes tribunal sentenced Hasina to death, a ruling that placed fresh pressure on an already fragile relationship. Hasina has been sheltering in India since fleeing Dhaka on August 5.
The two sides discussed “key bilateral issues,” according to the Bangladesh High Commission, and Khalilur invited Doval to visit Dhaka. India, in its response to the verdict, said it remained committed to “the best interests of the people of Bangladesh” and would continue engaging “constructively with all stakeholders.”
Beyond diplomacy, Indian hospitals report a sharp rise in Bangladeshi patients after a year-long collapse in medical travel. Major Kolkata hospitals say arrivals have returned to half or more of pre-crisis levels, helped by faster visa clearances and an influx of urgent cardiac and cancer cases.
The political and economic signals suggest the relationship is no longer in a deep freeze. But the recovery remains delicate as Dhaka presses for Hasina’s extradition and India weighs domestic sensitivities. Analysts say the warming trend is real but reversible.