Bangladesh minister calls Hasina 'terrorist', says she is hurdle to PM Rahman’s India visit

Bangladesh State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiyun Kobir has called former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina a “terrorist” and said that “principal challenge” in planning a visit of Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to India are the activities by her. Kobir spoke to reporters on the sidelines of the ongoing ‘Bay of Bengal Conversation’ organised by Dhaka’s Centre for Governance Studies (CGS). He claimed that Hasina and her team are attempting to “destabilise a foreign country.” He said that Hasina will not help India and New Delhi should understand the “challenges of a newly elected government” in Bangladesh.

Also Read: Will Sheikh Hasina and her Awami League find space in Tarique Rahman’s ‘new Bangladesh’ amid Jamaat’s rise?

Hailing India for halting an in-person press conference by Awami leaders, Kobir said: “We are seeing some positive signs as India is trying to restrain them. That is the norm between two countries. If they (Hasina and her team) are restrained, then there will be no problem in the [bilateral] relationship." He explained: "The visit will be bilateral but there are challenges and through dialogue we will overcome them. The principal challenge is not too much to ask for. Sheikh Hasina and her team are stationed in Delhi and they are trying to sitting in Delhi. This does not benefit India either. The visit of Prime Minister will take place at a conducive time and I am hopeful. PM has never said that he will not visit [India],”he added.

India has extended two separate official invitations to Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to visit the country. One for an official bilateral visit and a second to attend the BRICS Summit hosted in New Delhi. But, he hasn't visited the country yet. Indian PM Narendra Modi and Rahman spoke over the phone in February 2026 after election victory but have not met in-person.

Also Read: 'I have said I intend to return...': Sheikh Hasina slams Bangladesh PM Tarique Rahman over her extradition row

India explains Hasina's arrival

Last week, Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi, speaking at the ‘Bay of Bengal Conversation’ in Dhaka, said that Indian authorities were caught off guard by how rapidly the situation escalated in Dhaka on August 5, 2024. He said that India was "not prepared" for Hasina's sudden flight to India. Responding to rumours, Trivedi clarified that Hasina was not transported to New Delhi by the Indian Air Force or the Indian Army. Instead, she arrived unexpectedly on a Bangladeshi military aircraft. The envoy noted that because she arrived while she was still technically the sitting Prime Minister of Bangladesh, India acted as a "good neighbor" and had virtually no option but to accept her request to land. Addressing demands from the current Tarique Rahman-led government for her extradition to face justice, Trivedi noted that the matter is under rigorous legal examination via structured bilateral mechanisms